Myanmar activist says China ignores junta's graft
By JIM GOMEZ, Associated Press Writer – Thu Aug 27, 5:59 am ET
MANILA, Philippines (AP) – China and other governments with lucrative business deals in Myanmar are ignoring massive corruption by its ruling military junta, a pro-democracy activist said Thursday.
Ka Hsaw Wa said corruption has become the second worst problem in Myanmar after widespread human rights violations and afflicts all levels of its government.
He spoke to The Associated Press in Manila, where he was named one of six recipients of the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay award, considered Asia's version of the Nobel
Prize, for documenting human rights and environmental abuses in his country.
Corruption in Myanmar should be dealt with urgently, since most people struggle to afford three meals a day, Ka Hsaw Wa said. But obtaining evidence is almost impossible, he said.
"It's simply economic plunder," Ka Hsaw Wa said, adding that "99.9 percent of the ruling junta, from a normal soldier to the top generals, are completely corrupt."
He said corruption within the military should be apparent to friendly foreign governments like China, but they look the other way.
"We won't turn a blind eye to that (corruption), of course," said Ethan Sun, a spokesman at the Chinese Embassy in Manila. He added, however, that trade and economic cooperation "benefit the peoples of both countries."
China has often supported the junta against international pressure in the past.
Most generals live in sprawling, heavily guarded compounds which are off-limits to the public, he said. When a secret video of the lavish 2006 wedding of senior Gen. Than Shwe's daughter surfaced on YouTube, it caused outrage in his country.
International watchdogs have consistently ranked Myanmar, also known as Burma, among the world's most corrupt nations. Transparency International's 2008 list put it next to last, ahead of only Somalia.
The junta does not publicly respond to accusations of corruption, but it has launched anti-corruption drives mostly targeting low-level offenses. A call to the embassy in Manila was not answered Thursday.
"A lot of countries want to swallow Burma alive, it's so rich in natural resources," Ka Hsaw Wa said. "But they try not to see (corruption) in a way that they can do business there."
While the Myanmar government officially restricts logging, middle-level military officers have cut down huge swaths of rain forests for personal profit, he said.
Ka Hsaw Wa, a member of Myanmar's ethnic Karen minority, was a 17-year-old student activist when the government violently suppressed 1988 pro-democracy demonstrations. After his arrest, he fled to the jungle where he witnessed atrocities committed against villagers, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation said.
EarthRights, the nonprofit group he co-founded, filed a case in the United States in 1996 against the U.S.-based oil company Unocal for alleged complicity in human rights and environmental abuses committed by Myanmar's military in the building of the Yadana gas pipeline. After 10 years of litigation, Unocal agreed to compensate the 11 petitioners.
EarthRights also runs a school in Thailand that trains young people from Myanmar and other countries in nonviolent social change.
By JIM GOMEZ, Associated Press Writer – Thu Aug 27, 5:59 am ET
MANILA, Philippines (AP) – China and other governments with lucrative business deals in Myanmar are ignoring massive corruption by its ruling military junta, a pro-democracy activist said Thursday.
Ka Hsaw Wa said corruption has become the second worst problem in Myanmar after widespread human rights violations and afflicts all levels of its government.
He spoke to The Associated Press in Manila, where he was named one of six recipients of the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay award, considered Asia's version of the Nobel
Prize, for documenting human rights and environmental abuses in his country.
Corruption in Myanmar should be dealt with urgently, since most people struggle to afford three meals a day, Ka Hsaw Wa said. But obtaining evidence is almost impossible, he said.
"It's simply economic plunder," Ka Hsaw Wa said, adding that "99.9 percent of the ruling junta, from a normal soldier to the top generals, are completely corrupt."
He said corruption within the military should be apparent to friendly foreign governments like China, but they look the other way.
"We won't turn a blind eye to that (corruption), of course," said Ethan Sun, a spokesman at the Chinese Embassy in Manila. He added, however, that trade and economic cooperation "benefit the peoples of both countries."
China has often supported the junta against international pressure in the past.
Most generals live in sprawling, heavily guarded compounds which are off-limits to the public, he said. When a secret video of the lavish 2006 wedding of senior Gen. Than Shwe's daughter surfaced on YouTube, it caused outrage in his country.
International watchdogs have consistently ranked Myanmar, also known as Burma, among the world's most corrupt nations. Transparency International's 2008 list put it next to last, ahead of only Somalia.
The junta does not publicly respond to accusations of corruption, but it has launched anti-corruption drives mostly targeting low-level offenses. A call to the embassy in Manila was not answered Thursday.
"A lot of countries want to swallow Burma alive, it's so rich in natural resources," Ka Hsaw Wa said. "But they try not to see (corruption) in a way that they can do business there."
While the Myanmar government officially restricts logging, middle-level military officers have cut down huge swaths of rain forests for personal profit, he said.
Ka Hsaw Wa, a member of Myanmar's ethnic Karen minority, was a 17-year-old student activist when the government violently suppressed 1988 pro-democracy demonstrations. After his arrest, he fled to the jungle where he witnessed atrocities committed against villagers, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation said.
EarthRights, the nonprofit group he co-founded, filed a case in the United States in 1996 against the U.S.-based oil company Unocal for alleged complicity in human rights and environmental abuses committed by Myanmar's military in the building of the Yadana gas pipeline. After 10 years of litigation, Unocal agreed to compensate the 11 petitioners.
EarthRights also runs a school in Thailand that trains young people from Myanmar and other countries in nonviolent social change.
*********************************************************
Myanmar's Suu Kyi to file appeal on case next week
AP - Friday, August 28
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – Lawyers for Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi said Thursday they will file an appeal next week against the criminal conviction that put the democracy leader under house arrest for 18 more months.
The lawyers met for two hours Thursday afternoon with 64-year-old Nobel laureate to finalize details of her appeal, Nyan Win, one of the lawyers, said.
He declined to reveal details of the legal brief, but said it would be submitted to the Divisional Court in Yangon either Monday or Tuesday.
A district court on Aug. 11 found Suu Kyi guilty of violating the terms of her earlier detention by sheltering an uninvited American visitor at her home. The court convicted her to three years in prison with hard labor, but that sentence was reduced to 18 months of house arrest by order of military junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe.
The American, John Yettaw, who was sentenced to seven years in prison, was released on humanitarian grounds and deported on Aug. 16.
Suu Kyi and her two female companions returned to her tightly guarded home the day she was convicted. She has been detained for about 14 of the past 20 years for her nonviolent political activities, but this year was the first time she faced criminal charges.
Suu Kyi's sentence ensures she cannot participate in elections scheduled for next year. Her party swept elections in 1990 but the results have never been honored by the military, which has ruled the country since 1962.
AP - Friday, August 28
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – Lawyers for Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi said Thursday they will file an appeal next week against the criminal conviction that put the democracy leader under house arrest for 18 more months.
The lawyers met for two hours Thursday afternoon with 64-year-old Nobel laureate to finalize details of her appeal, Nyan Win, one of the lawyers, said.
He declined to reveal details of the legal brief, but said it would be submitted to the Divisional Court in Yangon either Monday or Tuesday.
A district court on Aug. 11 found Suu Kyi guilty of violating the terms of her earlier detention by sheltering an uninvited American visitor at her home. The court convicted her to three years in prison with hard labor, but that sentence was reduced to 18 months of house arrest by order of military junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe.
The American, John Yettaw, who was sentenced to seven years in prison, was released on humanitarian grounds and deported on Aug. 16.
Suu Kyi and her two female companions returned to her tightly guarded home the day she was convicted. She has been detained for about 14 of the past 20 years for her nonviolent political activities, but this year was the first time she faced criminal charges.
Suu Kyi's sentence ensures she cannot participate in elections scheduled for next year. Her party swept elections in 1990 but the results have never been honored by the military, which has ruled the country since 1962.
*********************************************************
Myanmar police arrest 6 suspects after drug bust
Thu Aug 27, 4:17 am ET
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – Police in Myanmar arrested six people after a recent drug bust that officials said Thursday was considerably smaller than initial reports in state media.
An anti-drug squad seized nearly 3 million methamphetamine tablets and 104 blocks of heroin totaling 80 pounds (36 kilograms) during a raid of two homes in a northeastern border town with Thailand on Monday, according to the Myanma Ahlin newspaper and an official in the Home Ministry's narcotics division.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media.
A day earlier, the state-run newspaper reported two of the heroin blocks weighed a staggering 1,540 pounds (700 kilograms). It did not give the weight of the remaining 102 blocks.
The initial report also said the anti-drug squad confiscated two guns, ammunition and arrested four people in the raid in the town of Tachileik, on the border with Thailand.
Thursday's report said confessions from the four suspects led to two more arrests of Thai citizens alleged to be accomplices. The pair was staying at a hotel in Tachileik.
Myanmar, also known as Burma, produced an estimated 410 tons of opium in 2008, enough to make about 40 tons of heroin, according to United Nations figures. The country is the world's second-largest producer after Afghanistan, which accounts for 90 percent of world output.
Myanmar is also a major source of methamphetamine. Much of it is trafficked to neighboring Thailand where abuse of the drug is rampant.
Thu Aug 27, 4:17 am ET
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – Police in Myanmar arrested six people after a recent drug bust that officials said Thursday was considerably smaller than initial reports in state media.
An anti-drug squad seized nearly 3 million methamphetamine tablets and 104 blocks of heroin totaling 80 pounds (36 kilograms) during a raid of two homes in a northeastern border town with Thailand on Monday, according to the Myanma Ahlin newspaper and an official in the Home Ministry's narcotics division.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media.
A day earlier, the state-run newspaper reported two of the heroin blocks weighed a staggering 1,540 pounds (700 kilograms). It did not give the weight of the remaining 102 blocks.
The initial report also said the anti-drug squad confiscated two guns, ammunition and arrested four people in the raid in the town of Tachileik, on the border with Thailand.
Thursday's report said confessions from the four suspects led to two more arrests of Thai citizens alleged to be accomplices. The pair was staying at a hotel in Tachileik.
Myanmar, also known as Burma, produced an estimated 410 tons of opium in 2008, enough to make about 40 tons of heroin, according to United Nations figures. The country is the world's second-largest producer after Afghanistan, which accounts for 90 percent of world output.
Myanmar is also a major source of methamphetamine. Much of it is trafficked to neighboring Thailand where abuse of the drug is rampant.
*********************************************************
US man wept 'every day' over Suu Kyi trial
1 hr 19 mins ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) – John Yettaw wept "every day" after he was jailed and later freed by Myanmar's military junta for swimming to Aung San Suu Kyi's home, he claimed in an interview broadcast Thursday.
A devout Mormon from Falcon, Missouri, Yettaw had been sentenced to seven years' hard labor for swimming to the lakeside home of the democracy icon in early May using a pair of homemade flippers, but he was freed after a visit by Democratic Senator Jim Webb earlier this month.
The bizarre incident, which led some to allege Yettaw was mentally ill, landed Suu Kyi back into house arrest for another 18 months, meaning that she will be locked up during elections promised by the ruling junta in 2010.
"Little did I know they were going to arrest her and put her on trial," Yettaw told CNN in his first interview since he was freed, insisting he was perfectly sane.
"I wept every day, I suffered every day."
Yettaw, who plans to write a book about the ordeal, said his motives were purely humanitarian and prompted by visions that Myanmar's generals "were going to murder her."
"I had a premonition. I'm going to free a political prisoner in Burma," the retired bus driver and Vietnam War veteran said.
"It's about stopping the killings. And that's what it was from day one... This has been her message of peace."
Asked if Suu Kyi was glad to see him arrive at her home, Yettaw said: "absolutely."
Police, he said, interrogated him day and night for two and a half weeks.
1 hr 19 mins ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) – John Yettaw wept "every day" after he was jailed and later freed by Myanmar's military junta for swimming to Aung San Suu Kyi's home, he claimed in an interview broadcast Thursday.
A devout Mormon from Falcon, Missouri, Yettaw had been sentenced to seven years' hard labor for swimming to the lakeside home of the democracy icon in early May using a pair of homemade flippers, but he was freed after a visit by Democratic Senator Jim Webb earlier this month.
The bizarre incident, which led some to allege Yettaw was mentally ill, landed Suu Kyi back into house arrest for another 18 months, meaning that she will be locked up during elections promised by the ruling junta in 2010.
"Little did I know they were going to arrest her and put her on trial," Yettaw told CNN in his first interview since he was freed, insisting he was perfectly sane.
"I wept every day, I suffered every day."
Yettaw, who plans to write a book about the ordeal, said his motives were purely humanitarian and prompted by visions that Myanmar's generals "were going to murder her."
"I had a premonition. I'm going to free a political prisoner in Burma," the retired bus driver and Vietnam War veteran said.
"It's about stopping the killings. And that's what it was from day one... This has been her message of peace."
Asked if Suu Kyi was glad to see him arrive at her home, Yettaw said: "absolutely."
Police, he said, interrogated him day and night for two and a half weeks.
*********************************************************
More fighting feared as thousands flee Myanmar: activists
Thu Aug 27, 6:20 am ET
BANGKOK (AFP) – Fighting between Myanmar's junta and ethnic rebel groups in northeastern Myanmar was expected to escalate after thousands of refugees fled to the Chinese border, activists said Thursday.
The exodus from Kokang in Shan state began on August 8 after Myanmar's junta deployed troops in the mainly ethnic Chinese region, said the US Campaign for Burma (USCB), which uses Myanmar's former name.
The USCB said "tens of thousands of ethnic people" had fled the region as China's Chongqing Evening Post reported that up to 10,000 refugees had arrived in the Chinese border town of Nansan in southwestern Yunnan province.
The exodus began after Myanmar sent dozens of military police to crack down on a gun-repair factory suspected of being a front for drugs production, sparking fear among locals, the report said.
Although the newspaper said the situation had eased, with China helping to repatriate the refugees, the Washington-based USCB warned of more confrontation after tensions "escalated to a dangerous level" in recent days.
The group said a 20-year ceasefire between Kokang rebels and Myanmar's government now seemed to be "effectively broken."
It also said the Kokang forces were divided, with one faction joining the government's troops occupying Laogai, capital of the Kogang region.
The other faction, which refused to obey the junta's order to place its troops under army control, had withdrawn from Laogai to take up positions in surrounding mountains.
"More confrontation and military encounters are expected in the following days and thousands of villagers are fleeing to the China-Burma border to avoid the war," it said.
Myanmar, under military rule since 1962, has signed ceasefires with 17 ethnic armed groups.
Rights groups have accused the military regime of committing crimes against humanity by targeting civilians during offensives against ethnic rebels.
Tens of thousands of refugees live along Thailand's border with Myanmar, most of whom have fled army crackdowns in the east.
The USCB said it now expected the junta to employ similar strategies to "wipe out ethnic resistance" in northern Myanmar, resulting in more refugees and also more sexual violence in the region.
It added that the junta's chance of moving forward with its plan for elections in 2010 were "very thin," as it had failed to disarm ethnic groups and make them join in the electoral process.
A border official in Nansan, who asked not to be named, confirmed that "many" Myanmar nationals had arrived in China in recent weeks, but could not give a precise figure.
He said local and provincial authorities had set up an office to deal with the influx of refugees, without elaborating.
Earlier this month, Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Myanmar's junta to immediately end attacks against civilians after thousands were displaced in Shan state.
It said that the Myanmar army had reportedly deployed battalions to clear civilians from large areas in central Shan between July 27 and August 1, burning down more than 500 houses as they attacked 39 villages in the area.
HRW said it thought the operation was part of an intensified campaign against Shan State Army-South, an insurgent group that operates in the area.
Thu Aug 27, 6:20 am ET
BANGKOK (AFP) – Fighting between Myanmar's junta and ethnic rebel groups in northeastern Myanmar was expected to escalate after thousands of refugees fled to the Chinese border, activists said Thursday.
The exodus from Kokang in Shan state began on August 8 after Myanmar's junta deployed troops in the mainly ethnic Chinese region, said the US Campaign for Burma (USCB), which uses Myanmar's former name.
The USCB said "tens of thousands of ethnic people" had fled the region as China's Chongqing Evening Post reported that up to 10,000 refugees had arrived in the Chinese border town of Nansan in southwestern Yunnan province.
The exodus began after Myanmar sent dozens of military police to crack down on a gun-repair factory suspected of being a front for drugs production, sparking fear among locals, the report said.
Although the newspaper said the situation had eased, with China helping to repatriate the refugees, the Washington-based USCB warned of more confrontation after tensions "escalated to a dangerous level" in recent days.
The group said a 20-year ceasefire between Kokang rebels and Myanmar's government now seemed to be "effectively broken."
It also said the Kokang forces were divided, with one faction joining the government's troops occupying Laogai, capital of the Kogang region.
The other faction, which refused to obey the junta's order to place its troops under army control, had withdrawn from Laogai to take up positions in surrounding mountains.
"More confrontation and military encounters are expected in the following days and thousands of villagers are fleeing to the China-Burma border to avoid the war," it said.
Myanmar, under military rule since 1962, has signed ceasefires with 17 ethnic armed groups.
Rights groups have accused the military regime of committing crimes against humanity by targeting civilians during offensives against ethnic rebels.
Tens of thousands of refugees live along Thailand's border with Myanmar, most of whom have fled army crackdowns in the east.
The USCB said it now expected the junta to employ similar strategies to "wipe out ethnic resistance" in northern Myanmar, resulting in more refugees and also more sexual violence in the region.
It added that the junta's chance of moving forward with its plan for elections in 2010 were "very thin," as it had failed to disarm ethnic groups and make them join in the electoral process.
A border official in Nansan, who asked not to be named, confirmed that "many" Myanmar nationals had arrived in China in recent weeks, but could not give a precise figure.
He said local and provincial authorities had set up an office to deal with the influx of refugees, without elaborating.
Earlier this month, Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Myanmar's junta to immediately end attacks against civilians after thousands were displaced in Shan state.
It said that the Myanmar army had reportedly deployed battalions to clear civilians from large areas in central Shan between July 27 and August 1, burning down more than 500 houses as they attacked 39 villages in the area.
HRW said it thought the operation was part of an intensified campaign against Shan State Army-South, an insurgent group that operates in the area.
*********************************************************
Will polls bring change to army-ruled Myanmar?
Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:15am EDT
Analysis
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Long-awaited elections are set for next year, the final destination on Myanmar's "road map" to democracy, but it is far from clear what civilian rule will look like after almost 50 years of army rule.
The junta has promised the vote will be free, fair and inclusive. But with no date set, electoral laws yet to be drafted and opposition politicians still in jail, more questions than answers surround the first elections in the resource-rich Southeast Asian nation in 20 years.
What is not in doubt, analysts say, is that the junta will do whatever it takes to ensure that real control over the former British colony will remain with the military or its proxies.
"Future governments might be civilianized, but they certainly won't be civilian," said David Steinberg, a veteran Myanmar analyst at Georgetown University in Washington.
"The military will still have ultimate control. They believe that in the long term, they are the only institution capable of keeping the country together."
A glance at the new constitution leaves little doubt the military will run the show in the former Burma, and few expect the Burmese people will get much say.
The military has reserved 25 percent of house seats for itself, as well as control over key ministries and appointments. The chief of the armed forces will outrank the elected president and be able to assume power "in times of emergency."
Critics have therefore derided the seven-stage "road map" as a blueprint to legitimize military rule and ensure it retains a strong grip on power.
SANCTIONS TO REMAIN
The West remains skeptical about polls and is unlikely to lift economic sanctions on the country, especially if a "democratic" Myanmar differs little from the army-ruled version.
Some analysts are not completely dismissive.
"It won't be any different to start with, but for the people, the hope is that something good will come out of this process in the years to come," said Win Min, a Harvard-educated Burmese exile and lecturer at Thailand's Payap University.
Steve Vickers, a regional analyst at FTI-International Risk, agreed: "I see some possibility of some gentle progress depending on what happens in this election or post this election. I'm not as gloom and doom as everybody else."
Some analysts even accept that the military's involvement in the democratic process might be necessary in the medium term as it is the only institution in Myanmar with any real political experience.
The opposition parties have played no part in national politics. Civil servants and military officials are often better educated and at least have experience of government. Some provincial military officials have earned a certain respect.
"Their involvement is not entirely a bad thing and the military will be an essential part of the transition of power," said Trevor Wilson, a former Australian ambassador to Myanmar.
"There's probably no choice, but it could be stabilizing to have an arrangement like this for the next 10 years or so."
The extent to which opposition parties and ethnic groups will play a part in the process remains murky, with tight controls likely to prevent anyone deemed a threat to the junta from running for office.
Their role will probably be restricted to sitting in the 440-member national assembly, which analysts expect to be dominated by civil servants, junta cronies and retired generals, serving only as a rubber stamp for the army's policies.
NLD SPLIT
The opposition parties have not yet said if they will run -- even if they are allowed to take part. The National League for Democracy (NLD), which has been at the forefront of the pro-democracy struggle in Myanmar under detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, is split over whether it will enter the electoral process.
It won the last election in 1990 by a landslide but was denied power by the army. Some of its old guard have been unable to move on from that and still want the junta to recognize its victory.
Insiders say younger members are urging the senior party leadership to enter the election, fearing a boycott would erode the NLD's relevance and credibility.
Many analysts say the NLD, and other opposition parties, are regarded more by the people as alternatives to an oppressive regime than as political heavyweights capable of returning the once thriving country to its former glory.
Western powers and even Myanmar's regional allies have warned that the legitimacy of the elections will be questioned unless Suu Kyi and the estimated 2,100 political prisoners are freed to take part.
Even so, analysts say the polls offer a window of opportunity for Myanmar to embark on reform.
"It would be inappropriate and unreasonable for everyone to dismiss this process completely," added Steinberg, who has studied Myanmar since the military seized power in a 1962 coup.
"Whatever happens, it has to be better than the last 50 years."
Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:15am EDT
Analysis
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Long-awaited elections are set for next year, the final destination on Myanmar's "road map" to democracy, but it is far from clear what civilian rule will look like after almost 50 years of army rule.
The junta has promised the vote will be free, fair and inclusive. But with no date set, electoral laws yet to be drafted and opposition politicians still in jail, more questions than answers surround the first elections in the resource-rich Southeast Asian nation in 20 years.
What is not in doubt, analysts say, is that the junta will do whatever it takes to ensure that real control over the former British colony will remain with the military or its proxies.
"Future governments might be civilianized, but they certainly won't be civilian," said David Steinberg, a veteran Myanmar analyst at Georgetown University in Washington.
"The military will still have ultimate control. They believe that in the long term, they are the only institution capable of keeping the country together."
A glance at the new constitution leaves little doubt the military will run the show in the former Burma, and few expect the Burmese people will get much say.
The military has reserved 25 percent of house seats for itself, as well as control over key ministries and appointments. The chief of the armed forces will outrank the elected president and be able to assume power "in times of emergency."
Critics have therefore derided the seven-stage "road map" as a blueprint to legitimize military rule and ensure it retains a strong grip on power.
SANCTIONS TO REMAIN
The West remains skeptical about polls and is unlikely to lift economic sanctions on the country, especially if a "democratic" Myanmar differs little from the army-ruled version.
Some analysts are not completely dismissive.
"It won't be any different to start with, but for the people, the hope is that something good will come out of this process in the years to come," said Win Min, a Harvard-educated Burmese exile and lecturer at Thailand's Payap University.
Steve Vickers, a regional analyst at FTI-International Risk, agreed: "I see some possibility of some gentle progress depending on what happens in this election or post this election. I'm not as gloom and doom as everybody else."
Some analysts even accept that the military's involvement in the democratic process might be necessary in the medium term as it is the only institution in Myanmar with any real political experience.
The opposition parties have played no part in national politics. Civil servants and military officials are often better educated and at least have experience of government. Some provincial military officials have earned a certain respect.
"Their involvement is not entirely a bad thing and the military will be an essential part of the transition of power," said Trevor Wilson, a former Australian ambassador to Myanmar.
"There's probably no choice, but it could be stabilizing to have an arrangement like this for the next 10 years or so."
The extent to which opposition parties and ethnic groups will play a part in the process remains murky, with tight controls likely to prevent anyone deemed a threat to the junta from running for office.
Their role will probably be restricted to sitting in the 440-member national assembly, which analysts expect to be dominated by civil servants, junta cronies and retired generals, serving only as a rubber stamp for the army's policies.
NLD SPLIT
The opposition parties have not yet said if they will run -- even if they are allowed to take part. The National League for Democracy (NLD), which has been at the forefront of the pro-democracy struggle in Myanmar under detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, is split over whether it will enter the electoral process.
It won the last election in 1990 by a landslide but was denied power by the army. Some of its old guard have been unable to move on from that and still want the junta to recognize its victory.
Insiders say younger members are urging the senior party leadership to enter the election, fearing a boycott would erode the NLD's relevance and credibility.
Many analysts say the NLD, and other opposition parties, are regarded more by the people as alternatives to an oppressive regime than as political heavyweights capable of returning the once thriving country to its former glory.
Western powers and even Myanmar's regional allies have warned that the legitimacy of the elections will be questioned unless Suu Kyi and the estimated 2,100 political prisoners are freed to take part.
Even so, analysts say the polls offer a window of opportunity for Myanmar to embark on reform.
"It would be inappropriate and unreasonable for everyone to dismiss this process completely," added Steinberg, who has studied Myanmar since the military seized power in a 1962 coup.
"Whatever happens, it has to be better than the last 50 years."
*********************************************************
SCENARIOS: Myanmar's uncertain post-election future
Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:14am EDT
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Next year military-ruled Myanmar will hold its first democratic election in two decades, polls that critics say will be a sham resulting in no significant transfer of power to a civilian government.
The resource-rich nation of 48 million people is heading for a period of uncertainty, with concerns about economic and social stability and whether the country will really become any more democratic after almost five decades of army rule.
Following are possible post-election scenarios:
COSMETIC CHANGE ONLY, MILITARY RETAINS POWER
Few believe the military will really hand over power to a civilian government. The new constitution guarantees the army 25 percent of parliamentary seats, and retired generals or army proxies are expected to run and win plenty more. The military will have jurisdiction over key ministries and reserves the right to take power at a time of national crisis.
Civilians backed, or at least vetted, by the junta will probably be given some government positions, but analysts say the power-hungry and staunchly nationalist military will still control the major policy and budgetary decisions.
"The generals have made sure they'll retain some power because they believe they are the only institution that can keep the country together," said Myanmar analyst David Steinberg, a Georgetown University academic.
... IN THAT CASE, WILL SANCTIONS REMAIN?
Most analysts believe the West will maintain sanctions if the election is deemed a sham, although the Unites States is reviewing its policy and other voices are saying that sanctions have done nothing to change the nature of the military regime.
One worry in the West is that sanctions are allowing the Chinese to strengthen their presence in neighboring Myanmar.
A pipeline is scheduled to take gas from the country to Yunnan province from 2012 and an oil pipeline is also planned, which would allow Chinese tankers to avoid the Malacca Straits.
One concern in both the West and Asian countries is that such commercial involvement, as well as undermining Western sanctions, could bring a military dimension, strengthening Chinese military clout in the region.
GRADUAL TRANSFER TO CIVILIAN CONTROL
In the long term, Myanmar could undergo a gradual transition of power to a civilian government, free of military control. This would be an evolutionary process rather than a junta-inspired shift.
Future elections, constitutional amendments and shifts in the power structure or patronage systems could lead to the emergence of splinter groups or factions within the military; some may favor offering roles to experienced, educated civilians deemed capable of handling key areas, in particular, the economy.
"The generals may believe they can control political proxies, crony businessmen, military colleagues and ethnic factions ... but in a new context these groups might develop independent agendas," the International Crisis Group said in a report.
THE PEOPLE MAY REJECT MILITARY-CONTROLLED GOVERNMENT
Decades of economic mismanagement, human rights abuses and failure to invest sufficiently in education, health and public services have created deep public resentment of the military.
Nationwide monk-led protests in 2007 triggered by increases in fuel and cooking gas prices stoked public anger. The bloody crackdown that followed showed the junta had no qualms about using force to suppress dissent.
Myanmar's people have been promised big things after the elections. Analysts say they could revolt if a new government fails to deliver the goods.
"Attitudes have changed radically there," said Trevor Wilson, a former Australian ambassador to Myanmar, now an academic.
"The military has made plenty of mistakes before, so there's definitely potential for things to explode if they continue to handle things badly."
"DEMOCRACY" FAILS, MILITARY TAKES BACK POWER
The last time elections were held in 1990, the result was unfavorable for the generals and they refused to hand over power. If the 2010 election process throws up problems, the regime could scrap or indefinitely postpone the polls, citing reasons of national security and stability.
Even if a government and national assembly are in place, a constitutional clause allows the commander-in-chief to dissolve the house and assume power at a time of crisis. If army influence wanes, it could provoke a crisis of its own making as a pretext to wrestle back control.
"They have given themselves a way out," said Win Min, an academic and Burmese exile. "They can take back power whenever they want to."
However, most analysts say this is unlikely: provisions written into the constitution, drafted mainly by the military, will ensure there is no real threat to the status quo.
Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:14am EDT
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Next year military-ruled Myanmar will hold its first democratic election in two decades, polls that critics say will be a sham resulting in no significant transfer of power to a civilian government.
The resource-rich nation of 48 million people is heading for a period of uncertainty, with concerns about economic and social stability and whether the country will really become any more democratic after almost five decades of army rule.
Following are possible post-election scenarios:
COSMETIC CHANGE ONLY, MILITARY RETAINS POWER
Few believe the military will really hand over power to a civilian government. The new constitution guarantees the army 25 percent of parliamentary seats, and retired generals or army proxies are expected to run and win plenty more. The military will have jurisdiction over key ministries and reserves the right to take power at a time of national crisis.
Civilians backed, or at least vetted, by the junta will probably be given some government positions, but analysts say the power-hungry and staunchly nationalist military will still control the major policy and budgetary decisions.
"The generals have made sure they'll retain some power because they believe they are the only institution that can keep the country together," said Myanmar analyst David Steinberg, a Georgetown University academic.
... IN THAT CASE, WILL SANCTIONS REMAIN?
Most analysts believe the West will maintain sanctions if the election is deemed a sham, although the Unites States is reviewing its policy and other voices are saying that sanctions have done nothing to change the nature of the military regime.
One worry in the West is that sanctions are allowing the Chinese to strengthen their presence in neighboring Myanmar.
A pipeline is scheduled to take gas from the country to Yunnan province from 2012 and an oil pipeline is also planned, which would allow Chinese tankers to avoid the Malacca Straits.
One concern in both the West and Asian countries is that such commercial involvement, as well as undermining Western sanctions, could bring a military dimension, strengthening Chinese military clout in the region.
GRADUAL TRANSFER TO CIVILIAN CONTROL
In the long term, Myanmar could undergo a gradual transition of power to a civilian government, free of military control. This would be an evolutionary process rather than a junta-inspired shift.
Future elections, constitutional amendments and shifts in the power structure or patronage systems could lead to the emergence of splinter groups or factions within the military; some may favor offering roles to experienced, educated civilians deemed capable of handling key areas, in particular, the economy.
"The generals may believe they can control political proxies, crony businessmen, military colleagues and ethnic factions ... but in a new context these groups might develop independent agendas," the International Crisis Group said in a report.
THE PEOPLE MAY REJECT MILITARY-CONTROLLED GOVERNMENT
Decades of economic mismanagement, human rights abuses and failure to invest sufficiently in education, health and public services have created deep public resentment of the military.
Nationwide monk-led protests in 2007 triggered by increases in fuel and cooking gas prices stoked public anger. The bloody crackdown that followed showed the junta had no qualms about using force to suppress dissent.
Myanmar's people have been promised big things after the elections. Analysts say they could revolt if a new government fails to deliver the goods.
"Attitudes have changed radically there," said Trevor Wilson, a former Australian ambassador to Myanmar, now an academic.
"The military has made plenty of mistakes before, so there's definitely potential for things to explode if they continue to handle things badly."
"DEMOCRACY" FAILS, MILITARY TAKES BACK POWER
The last time elections were held in 1990, the result was unfavorable for the generals and they refused to hand over power. If the 2010 election process throws up problems, the regime could scrap or indefinitely postpone the polls, citing reasons of national security and stability.
Even if a government and national assembly are in place, a constitutional clause allows the commander-in-chief to dissolve the house and assume power at a time of crisis. If army influence wanes, it could provoke a crisis of its own making as a pretext to wrestle back control.
"They have given themselves a way out," said Win Min, an academic and Burmese exile. "They can take back power whenever they want to."
However, most analysts say this is unlikely: provisions written into the constitution, drafted mainly by the military, will ensure there is no real threat to the status quo.
*********************************************************
Q+A: How will elections work in army-ruled Myanmar?
Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:14am EDT
BANGKOK (Reuters) - In 2010 military-ruled Myanmar will hold its first parliamentary election in two decades, the final step in what the generals call a "road map" to democracy.
The junta has yet to set out how the poll will be conducted, although a constitution approved in a referendum last year provides some guide.
Critics have already dismissed the election as a ploy to legitimize and extend almost five decades of military rule.
WHY IS MYANMAR HOLDING ELECTIONS?
Sanctions have helped cripple the resource-rich country's economy and the regime's refusal to carry out reforms, release political prisoners or halt human rights abuses have made it an international pariah the West refuses to do business with.
Analysts say Myanmar wants to be accepted as part of the international community and boost trade. The generals know they must give up power -- nominally, at least -- to achieve this, but believe they are the only people capable of running the country.
WHEN WILL THE ELECTION TAKE PLACE?
No date has been decided and the generals have yet to draft laws that will detail how the vote will be conducted and who can stand. No election commission has been appointed and the junta has rejected international offers of monitors.
WHO WILL HOLD POWER IN POST-ELECTION MYANMAR?
A new constitution, drafted mainly by military officers and civil servants, was approved in a disputed referendum last year and stipulates Myanmar will be run by a civilian government elected by the people.
Key ministries like interior, justice and defense will be under the control of the military, which will also be granted a quarter of the 440 seats in parliament. Former generals can take additional seats not included in that quota, meaning some may retire to run in the polls.
The army commander-in-chief will remain the country's most powerful figure, senior to the president and able to tear up the constitution, appoint key ministers and assume overall power "in times of emergency."
WILL THE WEST MAINTAIN ECONOMIC SANCTIONS?
Analysts generally believe sanctions will continue.
However, an election that brings change without a full transition to democracy would sharpen the debate at a time when the United States at least is edging toward a review.
The view that sanctions have been counterproductive, serving only to impoverish the people and make the junta more hidebound, may be gaining ground. Against that, engagement by Asian neighbors has done nothing to loosen the junta's grip, either.
Washington has sketched out conditions for better relations, including the release of political prisoners, and could take this further after the election.
WHY IS AUNG SAN SUU KYI SIDELINED?
The hugely popular Aung San Suu Kyi, daughter of independence hero Aung San, remains the biggest threat to military rule, as was shown when her National League for Democracy (NLD) party won 392 of the 485 parliamentary seats in the 1990 vote, which the regime simply ignored.
Because of her rousing speeches and her ability to mobilize tens of thousands of people for pro-democracy rallies, the junta has kept her under lock and key for 14 of the past 20 years.
WHO WILL TAKE PART?
The junta recognizes 10 political parties, but it is not yet known how many intend to run. The NLD, the National Unity Party and the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy -- the top three performers in the 1990 polls -- are expected to take part.
However, there are deep divisions inside the NLD between older members who reject the polls and younger modernizers who see them as a way to spread their views. Some say an NLD boycott could render Suu Kyi's party a spent political force.
Detained or not, Suu Kyi herself will not be running for office. A clause in the current and previous constitutions means her marriage to a foreigner -- late British academic Michael Aris -- and the British citizenship of her children disqualify her.
Analysts say the junta will form its own nominee parties fronted by civilian proxies. With more than 2,000 political activists in prison -- and probably barred from running if released -- the polls will be far from inclusive.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN AFTER THE ELECTION?
Than Shwe recently told U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that the next time he visited Myanmar, he and his inner circle of army generals would all be civilians. But analysts expect the generals, or their proxies, to still pull the strings in a "democratic" Myanmar.
"There won't be change of any real substance, just a lot fewer people around in military uniform," said Myanmar analyst Derek Tonkin. "It's not so much the election that's important, more the uncertainty about what happens after it."
AND WHAT ABOUT THE TOP GENERALS?
Aging generals Than Shwe and Maung Aye might take the opportunity to retire and hand over power to their army proteges, perhaps pulling the strings from behind the scenes. Junta number three Thura Shwe Mann, 62, is widely tipped to take the top job.
Analysts say Than Shwe is unlikely to take the role of president, which would require travel and diplomatic engagements, which he is known to dislike. He would also have to answer to the military commander-in-chief -- an unlikely prospect.
"Than Shwe will retire and put people in place who will hold on to power and always protect him and his family," said David Steinberg, a Myanmar specialist at Georgetown University.
Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:14am EDT
BANGKOK (Reuters) - In 2010 military-ruled Myanmar will hold its first parliamentary election in two decades, the final step in what the generals call a "road map" to democracy.
The junta has yet to set out how the poll will be conducted, although a constitution approved in a referendum last year provides some guide.
Critics have already dismissed the election as a ploy to legitimize and extend almost five decades of military rule.
WHY IS MYANMAR HOLDING ELECTIONS?
Sanctions have helped cripple the resource-rich country's economy and the regime's refusal to carry out reforms, release political prisoners or halt human rights abuses have made it an international pariah the West refuses to do business with.
Analysts say Myanmar wants to be accepted as part of the international community and boost trade. The generals know they must give up power -- nominally, at least -- to achieve this, but believe they are the only people capable of running the country.
WHEN WILL THE ELECTION TAKE PLACE?
No date has been decided and the generals have yet to draft laws that will detail how the vote will be conducted and who can stand. No election commission has been appointed and the junta has rejected international offers of monitors.
WHO WILL HOLD POWER IN POST-ELECTION MYANMAR?
A new constitution, drafted mainly by military officers and civil servants, was approved in a disputed referendum last year and stipulates Myanmar will be run by a civilian government elected by the people.
Key ministries like interior, justice and defense will be under the control of the military, which will also be granted a quarter of the 440 seats in parliament. Former generals can take additional seats not included in that quota, meaning some may retire to run in the polls.
The army commander-in-chief will remain the country's most powerful figure, senior to the president and able to tear up the constitution, appoint key ministers and assume overall power "in times of emergency."
WILL THE WEST MAINTAIN ECONOMIC SANCTIONS?
Analysts generally believe sanctions will continue.
However, an election that brings change without a full transition to democracy would sharpen the debate at a time when the United States at least is edging toward a review.
The view that sanctions have been counterproductive, serving only to impoverish the people and make the junta more hidebound, may be gaining ground. Against that, engagement by Asian neighbors has done nothing to loosen the junta's grip, either.
Washington has sketched out conditions for better relations, including the release of political prisoners, and could take this further after the election.
WHY IS AUNG SAN SUU KYI SIDELINED?
The hugely popular Aung San Suu Kyi, daughter of independence hero Aung San, remains the biggest threat to military rule, as was shown when her National League for Democracy (NLD) party won 392 of the 485 parliamentary seats in the 1990 vote, which the regime simply ignored.
Because of her rousing speeches and her ability to mobilize tens of thousands of people for pro-democracy rallies, the junta has kept her under lock and key for 14 of the past 20 years.
WHO WILL TAKE PART?
The junta recognizes 10 political parties, but it is not yet known how many intend to run. The NLD, the National Unity Party and the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy -- the top three performers in the 1990 polls -- are expected to take part.
However, there are deep divisions inside the NLD between older members who reject the polls and younger modernizers who see them as a way to spread their views. Some say an NLD boycott could render Suu Kyi's party a spent political force.
Detained or not, Suu Kyi herself will not be running for office. A clause in the current and previous constitutions means her marriage to a foreigner -- late British academic Michael Aris -- and the British citizenship of her children disqualify her.
Analysts say the junta will form its own nominee parties fronted by civilian proxies. With more than 2,000 political activists in prison -- and probably barred from running if released -- the polls will be far from inclusive.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN AFTER THE ELECTION?
Than Shwe recently told U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that the next time he visited Myanmar, he and his inner circle of army generals would all be civilians. But analysts expect the generals, or their proxies, to still pull the strings in a "democratic" Myanmar.
"There won't be change of any real substance, just a lot fewer people around in military uniform," said Myanmar analyst Derek Tonkin. "It's not so much the election that's important, more the uncertainty about what happens after it."
AND WHAT ABOUT THE TOP GENERALS?
Aging generals Than Shwe and Maung Aye might take the opportunity to retire and hand over power to their army proteges, perhaps pulling the strings from behind the scenes. Junta number three Thura Shwe Mann, 62, is widely tipped to take the top job.
Analysts say Than Shwe is unlikely to take the role of president, which would require travel and diplomatic engagements, which he is known to dislike. He would also have to answer to the military commander-in-chief -- an unlikely prospect.
"Than Shwe will retire and put people in place who will hold on to power and always protect him and his family," said David Steinberg, a Myanmar specialist at Georgetown University.
*********************************************************
Heritage.org - There’s More to Senator Webb’s Burma Fizzle Than Meets the Eye
Posted August 26th, 2009 at 3.26pm in American Leadership.
Author: Walter Lohman
In today’s New York Times, Senator Webb makes his case for a new American policy on Burma. For someone so closely identified with opposition to sanctions, one would expect his alternative to be much bolder. After so much build up, is this it?
Senator Webb’s policy suggestions boil down to talking with the junta government, increasing humanitarian aid, and cooperation on the recovery of American World War II remains. Perhaps, he is only being realistic. In the current environment, when Congress has just unanimously approved and the President has signed extensions of sweeping sanctions, he has carefully identified areas where he has some prospect of success. No doubt, he may also be previewing – by design or intuition – the results of the
Administration’s Burma policy review.
The problem with the Senator’s case is not the specific policy prescriptions he offers, but its faulty assumptions.
Assumption #1: Sanctions have failed; engagement will work.
It is demonstrably true that American sanctions have not brought about change in Burma. But the answer lies in building the necessary international consensus to pressure it, not abandoning the effort. Besides, engagement by Burma’s neighbors has been no more effective. In taking his lead from Burma’s neighbors on engagement, Senator Webb should understand that ASEAN’s engagement has failed for good reason; it was never intended to bring about democratic change Burma. That goal has always been its rationalization for doing business with an odious regime.
As for the Chinese, there is at least integrity in their position; it has never argued for engagement on the basis of bringing democratic change to Burma. But for that reason, Senator Webb is barking up the wrong Chinese tree – as, in fact, he acknowledges may be the case. The truth is the Chinese will never bring meaningful pressure to bear on the junta. They proved that with a veto in the Security Council in 2007. And they have proven it by watering down every statement the Security Council makes when called to act.
Assumption #2: Normalization with Vietnam and China are models for Burma policy.
Senator Webb is fond of citing normalization of economic and diplomatic relations with Vietnam as a precedent for engaging Burma. But there is a fundamental difference. Vietnam made a strategic decision in 1986 to reform its economy and open up to the world. Without this decision, the subsequent normalization could not have happened. It is the same regarding U.S. normalization with China. The Burmese junta has not made such a strategic decision. They reach out piece meal for means of securing their grip on power. That’s why they joined ASEAN in 1997. There was a time in the 1990s when the Burmese were open to foreign visitors with critical perspectives.
They are much more discerning nowadays. Senator Webb was granted his historic meeting with Than Shwe because the Senator is an opponent of current American policy and his presence could be used - as it was - to send a signal of regime stability to the long suffering people of Burma.
Assumption #3: The new Burmese constitution is a basis for engagement.
Senator Webb rightly rests much of his case on Burma’s 2010 elections. But by focusing on “what is possible” instead of “free and fair elections”, he leaves little doubt that what he intends is to accept the junta’s terms. That intention is not just a matter of speculation. He made it clear in Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell’s confirmation hearing when the Senator pressed for an endorsement of the Burmese sham constitution. And in his New York Times piece today, when he recites the flaws in the constitution, he fails to list the biggest problem – the bar on Aung San Suu Kyi’s participation.
He advises her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), to participate in the elections despite this and despite the fact that the constitution is designed to ensure elections do not bring about a change in government. That is an extraordinarily tough call for them to make. Abandon the icon of the democracy movement, a Nobel Laureate, the inspiration of the Burmese people, to take part in a process that will validate an illegal government and relegate their 1990 victory to the dustbin of history. Who will they turn to then?
Assumption #4: American sanctions have given Chinese investment and interests a leg up.
Senator Webb, at his most admirable, is extremely worried about Chinese strategic interest in Southeast Asia. It is true that the Chinese are heavily involved in the Burmese economy and that they are using Burma for their own strategic purposes. But would permitting American investment change that? Not likely. Could the Burmese take American investment and still use Chinese investment to build mines, ports and pipelines to secure the flow of resources to China? Yes. In fact, they might find American investors to help. The only thing that will change China’s calculus is a change in the nature of the Burmese regime.
Throughout his Op-Ed, Senator Webb refers to Burma by its junta-designated name, “Myanmar.” That is certainly pleasing to the ears of the generals. In a microcosm it represents the problem with engagement. The NLD does not recognize the name “Myanmar”. The State Department through successive Administrations has refused to call it “Myanmar.” And Congress certainly doesn’t call it “Myanmar.”
But simply for the price of gaining a Burmese general’s ear, and nothing more, Senator Webb is willing to abide by the Burmese junta’s sensitivities. It is difficult to argue against increased humanitarian assistance – appropriately channeled through international NGOs and closely monitored for abuse – or cooperation to find remains of missing American airmen. It’s even difficult to argue against meeting with Burmese authorities under the right circumstances.
President Bush’s Administration did, and we do have diplomatic relations with Burma after all. (Senator Webb’s meetings in Burma in the wake of Suu Kyi’s conviction were decidedly not the right time.) But like changing the name we call it, these things are not going to elicit a response on the things Americans care about. It is certainly not the beginning of a road map to a normal US-Burma relationship.
More likely, if carried by Senator Webb’s assumptions, engagement will so invest America in the process of engagement itself that it will offer new slices off its current policy of “maximum pressure” just to keep it going, but with no real progress.
The North Koreans have mastered this game, and the Burmese are learning. What they have lacked is a playing partner. They have found one in Senator Webb. Let’s hope they do not find partners in President Obama and Secretary Clinton.
Posted August 26th, 2009 at 3.26pm in American Leadership.
Author: Walter Lohman
In today’s New York Times, Senator Webb makes his case for a new American policy on Burma. For someone so closely identified with opposition to sanctions, one would expect his alternative to be much bolder. After so much build up, is this it?
Senator Webb’s policy suggestions boil down to talking with the junta government, increasing humanitarian aid, and cooperation on the recovery of American World War II remains. Perhaps, he is only being realistic. In the current environment, when Congress has just unanimously approved and the President has signed extensions of sweeping sanctions, he has carefully identified areas where he has some prospect of success. No doubt, he may also be previewing – by design or intuition – the results of the
Administration’s Burma policy review.
The problem with the Senator’s case is not the specific policy prescriptions he offers, but its faulty assumptions.
Assumption #1: Sanctions have failed; engagement will work.
It is demonstrably true that American sanctions have not brought about change in Burma. But the answer lies in building the necessary international consensus to pressure it, not abandoning the effort. Besides, engagement by Burma’s neighbors has been no more effective. In taking his lead from Burma’s neighbors on engagement, Senator Webb should understand that ASEAN’s engagement has failed for good reason; it was never intended to bring about democratic change Burma. That goal has always been its rationalization for doing business with an odious regime.
As for the Chinese, there is at least integrity in their position; it has never argued for engagement on the basis of bringing democratic change to Burma. But for that reason, Senator Webb is barking up the wrong Chinese tree – as, in fact, he acknowledges may be the case. The truth is the Chinese will never bring meaningful pressure to bear on the junta. They proved that with a veto in the Security Council in 2007. And they have proven it by watering down every statement the Security Council makes when called to act.
Assumption #2: Normalization with Vietnam and China are models for Burma policy.
Senator Webb is fond of citing normalization of economic and diplomatic relations with Vietnam as a precedent for engaging Burma. But there is a fundamental difference. Vietnam made a strategic decision in 1986 to reform its economy and open up to the world. Without this decision, the subsequent normalization could not have happened. It is the same regarding U.S. normalization with China. The Burmese junta has not made such a strategic decision. They reach out piece meal for means of securing their grip on power. That’s why they joined ASEAN in 1997. There was a time in the 1990s when the Burmese were open to foreign visitors with critical perspectives.
They are much more discerning nowadays. Senator Webb was granted his historic meeting with Than Shwe because the Senator is an opponent of current American policy and his presence could be used - as it was - to send a signal of regime stability to the long suffering people of Burma.
Assumption #3: The new Burmese constitution is a basis for engagement.
Senator Webb rightly rests much of his case on Burma’s 2010 elections. But by focusing on “what is possible” instead of “free and fair elections”, he leaves little doubt that what he intends is to accept the junta’s terms. That intention is not just a matter of speculation. He made it clear in Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell’s confirmation hearing when the Senator pressed for an endorsement of the Burmese sham constitution. And in his New York Times piece today, when he recites the flaws in the constitution, he fails to list the biggest problem – the bar on Aung San Suu Kyi’s participation.
He advises her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), to participate in the elections despite this and despite the fact that the constitution is designed to ensure elections do not bring about a change in government. That is an extraordinarily tough call for them to make. Abandon the icon of the democracy movement, a Nobel Laureate, the inspiration of the Burmese people, to take part in a process that will validate an illegal government and relegate their 1990 victory to the dustbin of history. Who will they turn to then?
Assumption #4: American sanctions have given Chinese investment and interests a leg up.
Senator Webb, at his most admirable, is extremely worried about Chinese strategic interest in Southeast Asia. It is true that the Chinese are heavily involved in the Burmese economy and that they are using Burma for their own strategic purposes. But would permitting American investment change that? Not likely. Could the Burmese take American investment and still use Chinese investment to build mines, ports and pipelines to secure the flow of resources to China? Yes. In fact, they might find American investors to help. The only thing that will change China’s calculus is a change in the nature of the Burmese regime.
Throughout his Op-Ed, Senator Webb refers to Burma by its junta-designated name, “Myanmar.” That is certainly pleasing to the ears of the generals. In a microcosm it represents the problem with engagement. The NLD does not recognize the name “Myanmar”. The State Department through successive Administrations has refused to call it “Myanmar.” And Congress certainly doesn’t call it “Myanmar.”
But simply for the price of gaining a Burmese general’s ear, and nothing more, Senator Webb is willing to abide by the Burmese junta’s sensitivities. It is difficult to argue against increased humanitarian assistance – appropriately channeled through international NGOs and closely monitored for abuse – or cooperation to find remains of missing American airmen. It’s even difficult to argue against meeting with Burmese authorities under the right circumstances.
President Bush’s Administration did, and we do have diplomatic relations with Burma after all. (Senator Webb’s meetings in Burma in the wake of Suu Kyi’s conviction were decidedly not the right time.) But like changing the name we call it, these things are not going to elicit a response on the things Americans care about. It is certainly not the beginning of a road map to a normal US-Burma relationship.
More likely, if carried by Senator Webb’s assumptions, engagement will so invest America in the process of engagement itself that it will offer new slices off its current policy of “maximum pressure” just to keep it going, but with no real progress.
The North Koreans have mastered this game, and the Burmese are learning. What they have lacked is a playing partner. They have found one in Senator Webb. Let’s hope they do not find partners in President Obama and Secretary Clinton.
*********************************************************
EarthTimes - Myanmar military moves to crush Kokang Chinese
Posted : Thu, 27 Aug 2009 08:50:36 GMT
Bangkok - The Myanmar Army has occupied Laogai, the capital of the Kokang region in its eastern Shan State, sending thousands of refugees into neighbouring China while splitting the Kokang army into two opposing forces, media and resistance sources said Thursday. Laogai has been under Myanmar Army control since Monday, said Khuensai Jaipen, editor of the Shan Herald News Agency, a resistance media that monitors news in the remote Shan State.
The seizure of the capital followed a split in the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), as the Kokang army has been called since it signed a ceasefire with the Myanmar government 20 years ago.
According to border sources, MNDAA deputy chairman Bai Souqian, who is backed by the Myanmar military, now leads 200 Kokang troops, while MNDAA chairman Peng Jiasheng heads the remaining 800.
Thousands of Myanmar soldiers and Bai's Kokang troops now occupy Laogai while Peng's followers have fled to the Chinese border, sending thousands of refugees into the Nansan district of Yunnan province, Khuensai said.
The Kokang are an ethnic Han Chinese minority group who have lived for centuries in north-eastern Myanmar, once known as Burma. They formed one of the core groups in the Burmese Communist Party, now defunct, and are known to still have close ties with mainland China.
Myanmar authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Peng, who has been accused of involvement in drug trafficking.
Peng has in recent months openly opposed Myanmar's ruling junta's efforts to disarm and turn all ethnic minority forces into border militias under the army's control as part of the government's plan to hold a general election next year.
"It's been an open secret for a long time that the Kokang are involved in drug trafficking but only now are they taking action against Peng," Khuensai said.
Bai has supported the junta's border militia plan.
Border watchers have opined that the Myanmar Army's move against the Kokang, one of the smallest ethnic minority forces in Shan State, would be followed by similar attacks on the United Wa State Army and Shan State Army, which have also rejected the government's calls to become border militias.
It remained to be seen whether the Wa and Shan would join forces with the Kokang to oppose what appears to be a government push to pressure them into bowing to its demands that they lay down their arms and become border militia before next year's polls.
"A military alliance between the Kokang, Wa and Shan could raise an army of 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers that the Burmese army would have a hard time getting rid of," said David Mathieson, a Myanmar watcher for Human Rights Watch.
Posted : Thu, 27 Aug 2009 08:50:36 GMT
Bangkok - The Myanmar Army has occupied Laogai, the capital of the Kokang region in its eastern Shan State, sending thousands of refugees into neighbouring China while splitting the Kokang army into two opposing forces, media and resistance sources said Thursday. Laogai has been under Myanmar Army control since Monday, said Khuensai Jaipen, editor of the Shan Herald News Agency, a resistance media that monitors news in the remote Shan State.
The seizure of the capital followed a split in the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), as the Kokang army has been called since it signed a ceasefire with the Myanmar government 20 years ago.
According to border sources, MNDAA deputy chairman Bai Souqian, who is backed by the Myanmar military, now leads 200 Kokang troops, while MNDAA chairman Peng Jiasheng heads the remaining 800.
Thousands of Myanmar soldiers and Bai's Kokang troops now occupy Laogai while Peng's followers have fled to the Chinese border, sending thousands of refugees into the Nansan district of Yunnan province, Khuensai said.
The Kokang are an ethnic Han Chinese minority group who have lived for centuries in north-eastern Myanmar, once known as Burma. They formed one of the core groups in the Burmese Communist Party, now defunct, and are known to still have close ties with mainland China.
Myanmar authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Peng, who has been accused of involvement in drug trafficking.
Peng has in recent months openly opposed Myanmar's ruling junta's efforts to disarm and turn all ethnic minority forces into border militias under the army's control as part of the government's plan to hold a general election next year.
"It's been an open secret for a long time that the Kokang are involved in drug trafficking but only now are they taking action against Peng," Khuensai said.
Bai has supported the junta's border militia plan.
Border watchers have opined that the Myanmar Army's move against the Kokang, one of the smallest ethnic minority forces in Shan State, would be followed by similar attacks on the United Wa State Army and Shan State Army, which have also rejected the government's calls to become border militias.
It remained to be seen whether the Wa and Shan would join forces with the Kokang to oppose what appears to be a government push to pressure them into bowing to its demands that they lay down their arms and become border militia before next year's polls.
"A military alliance between the Kokang, Wa and Shan could raise an army of 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers that the Burmese army would have a hard time getting rid of," said David Mathieson, a Myanmar watcher for Human Rights Watch.
*********************************************************
China seeks closer ties with Myanmar
Published: Aug. 26, 2009 at 11:09 PM
BEIJING, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- China, already a close friend of the military-ruled Myanmar, will seek to boost bilateral ties with the isolated country, a senior Chinese legislator said.
"We attach importance to and support friendly exchanges and cooperation between social groups and organizations in China and Myanmar, which will contribute to the development of bilateral ties," Zhou Tienong, vice chairman of China's Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said in Beijing, Xinhua news agency reported.
Zhou, who spoke during a meeting with a visiting eight-member delegation from a government-supported organization from Myanmar, pledged to boost economic and trade cooperation with the international community, including Myanmar.
The delegation from the Union Solidarity and Development Association was led by U Than Htay, a member of the group's Central Executive Committee and Myanmar's deputy energy minister, the report said.
Myanmar, formerly called Burma, has been under military rule since 1962. The crackdown on pro-democracy movements in the country and the continued detention of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi have drawn widespread international condemnation.
Bilateral trade between China and Myanmar totaled $2.6 billion last year.
Published: Aug. 26, 2009 at 11:09 PM
BEIJING, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- China, already a close friend of the military-ruled Myanmar, will seek to boost bilateral ties with the isolated country, a senior Chinese legislator said.
"We attach importance to and support friendly exchanges and cooperation between social groups and organizations in China and Myanmar, which will contribute to the development of bilateral ties," Zhou Tienong, vice chairman of China's Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said in Beijing, Xinhua news agency reported.
Zhou, who spoke during a meeting with a visiting eight-member delegation from a government-supported organization from Myanmar, pledged to boost economic and trade cooperation with the international community, including Myanmar.
The delegation from the Union Solidarity and Development Association was led by U Than Htay, a member of the group's Central Executive Committee and Myanmar's deputy energy minister, the report said.
Myanmar, formerly called Burma, has been under military rule since 1962. The crackdown on pro-democracy movements in the country and the continued detention of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi have drawn widespread international condemnation.
Bilateral trade between China and Myanmar totaled $2.6 billion last year.
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Pittsburgh Tribune-Review - Monks want to use chants to protest Myanmar regime on opening day of G-20
By Carl Prine
Thursday, August 27, 2009
On the opening day of Pittsburgh's G-20 summit, a group of Buddhist monks wants to gather outside the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.
At the same time on Sept. 24, another group of the Sasana Moli — the International Burmese Monk Association — plans to stand in Union Square in Manhattan, to chant the Buddhist Metta Sutta, a meditative call for love and kindness for all people.
Theirs are anticipated to be quiet demonstrations against a Myanmar junta at odds with several members of the Group of 20 nations, including the United States and its European allies.
"We're making plans, but we haven't finalized them yet," said U Gunissa, a monk living in Baldwin Park, Calif., after being banned from Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, an impoverished south Asia nation of 55 million people ruled since 1962 by a military dictatorship.
"So far, we haven't received permission from the city of New York, and we are starting to plan for Pittsburgh. We want to come and protest the regime in Burma. There are many students, monks and political prisoners there. We want them released from jail. We want the military government to bring freedom and democracy to Burma."
The best known political prisoner is Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi, 64, who is held under house arrest.
Myanmar consular officials in Washington did not return phone calls seeking comment on the possible protests. The English-language version of The Irawaddy newspaper on Wednesday reported the possibility of prayerful protests in Pittsburgh. City officials said no monks petitioned to demonstrate.
The Thomas Merton Center in Garfield, working as a liaison between international and local groups planning demonstrations against policies of G-20 nations, said the organization representing the monks contacted it.
"They seem to be looking for space that they can use — for example, a place where they could do six hours of meditation or for other activities near the convention center," spokeswoman Melissa Minnich said.
The monks' proposed protest won't be the only religious event planned during the week of the G-20.
Bishop David A. Zubik of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh plans to take part in 40 hours of prayer, beginning at 6:30 a.m. Sept. 24, during a Eucharistic Adoration in O'Connor Hall at St. Paul Seminary in Oakwood. Bread for Life and other faith-based nonprofits will be active in several prayer meetings before and during the summit, as well.
In a letter to be published in Friday's "Pittsburgh Catholic," Zubik encourages Catholics to "support the efforts of the ... summit in prayer." He asks parishes to hold special prayers to prod world leaders to do the right thing regarding human freedom, natural resources, war and peace, the value of life and other issues.
"As we pray that the work of the G-20 summit reflects our thirst for worldwide justice, peace, religious freedom, uppermost is our hope for a world which grows to appreciate the dignity and sacredness of every human life," Zubik wrote. "At the same time, passion for justice cannot become mired in a culture of protest and violence."
If the monks are granted permits to hold simultaneous solemn demonstrations here and in New York, their gatherings would echo a larger series of anti-government protests, the "Saffron Revolution," that has pitted Myanmar's two largest institutions — Buddhist monks and the military, with about 400,000 members apiece — against each other for two years.
By Carl Prine
Thursday, August 27, 2009
On the opening day of Pittsburgh's G-20 summit, a group of Buddhist monks wants to gather outside the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.
At the same time on Sept. 24, another group of the Sasana Moli — the International Burmese Monk Association — plans to stand in Union Square in Manhattan, to chant the Buddhist Metta Sutta, a meditative call for love and kindness for all people.
Theirs are anticipated to be quiet demonstrations against a Myanmar junta at odds with several members of the Group of 20 nations, including the United States and its European allies.
"We're making plans, but we haven't finalized them yet," said U Gunissa, a monk living in Baldwin Park, Calif., after being banned from Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, an impoverished south Asia nation of 55 million people ruled since 1962 by a military dictatorship.
"So far, we haven't received permission from the city of New York, and we are starting to plan for Pittsburgh. We want to come and protest the regime in Burma. There are many students, monks and political prisoners there. We want them released from jail. We want the military government to bring freedom and democracy to Burma."
The best known political prisoner is Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi, 64, who is held under house arrest.
Myanmar consular officials in Washington did not return phone calls seeking comment on the possible protests. The English-language version of The Irawaddy newspaper on Wednesday reported the possibility of prayerful protests in Pittsburgh. City officials said no monks petitioned to demonstrate.
The Thomas Merton Center in Garfield, working as a liaison between international and local groups planning demonstrations against policies of G-20 nations, said the organization representing the monks contacted it.
"They seem to be looking for space that they can use — for example, a place where they could do six hours of meditation or for other activities near the convention center," spokeswoman Melissa Minnich said.
The monks' proposed protest won't be the only religious event planned during the week of the G-20.
Bishop David A. Zubik of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh plans to take part in 40 hours of prayer, beginning at 6:30 a.m. Sept. 24, during a Eucharistic Adoration in O'Connor Hall at St. Paul Seminary in Oakwood. Bread for Life and other faith-based nonprofits will be active in several prayer meetings before and during the summit, as well.
In a letter to be published in Friday's "Pittsburgh Catholic," Zubik encourages Catholics to "support the efforts of the ... summit in prayer." He asks parishes to hold special prayers to prod world leaders to do the right thing regarding human freedom, natural resources, war and peace, the value of life and other issues.
"As we pray that the work of the G-20 summit reflects our thirst for worldwide justice, peace, religious freedom, uppermost is our hope for a world which grows to appreciate the dignity and sacredness of every human life," Zubik wrote. "At the same time, passion for justice cannot become mired in a culture of protest and violence."
If the monks are granted permits to hold simultaneous solemn demonstrations here and in New York, their gatherings would echo a larger series of anti-government protests, the "Saffron Revolution," that has pitted Myanmar's two largest institutions — Buddhist monks and the military, with about 400,000 members apiece — against each other for two years.
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Thai couple arrested for drug trade in Myanmar border town
www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-27 10:42:01
YANGON, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Myanmar authorities arrested a Thai couple for drug trade with local drug traffickers in Tachilek,a border town in Myanmar's eastern Shan state Tuesday following the seizure of some arms and ammunition, heroin and stimulant tablets in the area a day earlier, official media reported Thursday.
The Thai couple, lodging at the Shweyegan Hotel, had offered to buy drugs at a price of 40 bahts per stimulant tablet, the New Light of Myanmar said.
The arrest was made by a local special anti-drug squad on further investigation, the report added.
On Monday, the Myanmar authorities seized some arms and ammunition, and heroin and stimulants in Tachilek. The seizure, which include two guns, 21 kilograms (kg) heroin and 102 heroin blocks as well as 964,000 stimulant tablets plus five motor cycles and two cars, was made at a house in the township's Wanli village.
These arms and drugs were hidden in a Town Ace car in the house, earlier report said, adding that through investigation, more seizures were made in another house in another village of Wanlone which include 1.9 million stimulant tablets, two blocks of heroin weighing 700 kg and 10 kg of ICE.
The authorities are trying to expose more culprits in connection with the drug trafficking.
www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-27 10:42:01
YANGON, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Myanmar authorities arrested a Thai couple for drug trade with local drug traffickers in Tachilek,a border town in Myanmar's eastern Shan state Tuesday following the seizure of some arms and ammunition, heroin and stimulant tablets in the area a day earlier, official media reported Thursday.
The Thai couple, lodging at the Shweyegan Hotel, had offered to buy drugs at a price of 40 bahts per stimulant tablet, the New Light of Myanmar said.
The arrest was made by a local special anti-drug squad on further investigation, the report added.
On Monday, the Myanmar authorities seized some arms and ammunition, and heroin and stimulants in Tachilek. The seizure, which include two guns, 21 kilograms (kg) heroin and 102 heroin blocks as well as 964,000 stimulant tablets plus five motor cycles and two cars, was made at a house in the township's Wanli village.
These arms and drugs were hidden in a Town Ace car in the house, earlier report said, adding that through investigation, more seizures were made in another house in another village of Wanlone which include 1.9 million stimulant tablets, two blocks of heroin weighing 700 kg and 10 kg of ICE.
The authorities are trying to expose more culprits in connection with the drug trafficking.
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Some int'l airlines to extend flight services to Myanmar
www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-27 11:23:32
YANGON, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- Some international airlines are making arrangement to extend their flight services to Myanmar in the coming open season running from October to next March, the local Yangon Times quoted airline sources as reporting Thursday.
The four days a week's flight services between Yangon and Singapore of the Jetstar Airline will be rescheduled to daily services.
The Myanmar Airways International (MAI will change its services between Yangon and Bangkok from five days a week's to daily's, the report said, adding that it will also operate the new route of Yangon-Gaya on every Wednesday and Saturday, while the other five days to Kuala Lumpur during the season.
The MAI, a Myanmar-foreign joint venture and the sole national flag carrier, is now flying the route five days a week.
The MAI resumed its normal flight to Bangkok in July last year with a newly-hired aircraft as an alternate arrangement after its former's was stopped flying Bangkok's new international airport earlier.
The 150-seat aircraft of Boeing 737-400 was hired from the Thai-based NOK airline.
Earlier, the MAI once also hired airbus-319 from Bhutan's Druk Air and has been flying under code-sharing systems with Singapore's Jet Star, Malaysia's MH and Thailand's TG for Yangon-Bangkok and Yangon-Kuala Lumpur routes.
According to the civil aviation authorities, 12 airlines including the Myanmar international airline and 11 foreign airlines are operating at the Yangon international Airport with about 85 flights per week in total between Yangon and eight destinations, namely Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Beijing viaKunming, Calcutta, Chiang Mai, Chinese Taipei and Doha.
The 11 foreign airlines flying Yangon comprise Air China, Thai Airways International, Indian Airlines, Qatar Airways, Silk Air, Malaysian Airlines, Bangkok Airways, Mandarin, Jetstar Asia, Phuket Airline and Thai Air Asia.
www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-27 11:23:32
YANGON, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- Some international airlines are making arrangement to extend their flight services to Myanmar in the coming open season running from October to next March, the local Yangon Times quoted airline sources as reporting Thursday.
The four days a week's flight services between Yangon and Singapore of the Jetstar Airline will be rescheduled to daily services.
The Myanmar Airways International (MAI will change its services between Yangon and Bangkok from five days a week's to daily's, the report said, adding that it will also operate the new route of Yangon-Gaya on every Wednesday and Saturday, while the other five days to Kuala Lumpur during the season.
The MAI, a Myanmar-foreign joint venture and the sole national flag carrier, is now flying the route five days a week.
The MAI resumed its normal flight to Bangkok in July last year with a newly-hired aircraft as an alternate arrangement after its former's was stopped flying Bangkok's new international airport earlier.
The 150-seat aircraft of Boeing 737-400 was hired from the Thai-based NOK airline.
Earlier, the MAI once also hired airbus-319 from Bhutan's Druk Air and has been flying under code-sharing systems with Singapore's Jet Star, Malaysia's MH and Thailand's TG for Yangon-Bangkok and Yangon-Kuala Lumpur routes.
According to the civil aviation authorities, 12 airlines including the Myanmar international airline and 11 foreign airlines are operating at the Yangon international Airport with about 85 flights per week in total between Yangon and eight destinations, namely Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Beijing viaKunming, Calcutta, Chiang Mai, Chinese Taipei and Doha.
The 11 foreign airlines flying Yangon comprise Air China, Thai Airways International, Indian Airlines, Qatar Airways, Silk Air, Malaysian Airlines, Bangkok Airways, Mandarin, Jetstar Asia, Phuket Airline and Thai Air Asia.
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More Indian companies to invest in Myanmar this year
www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-27 18:43:34
YANGON, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- More Indian companies are to invest in Myanmar's information technology (IT) and education sectors this year, a local weekly The Myanmar Post reported Thursday.
Being one of the IT power countries, India is willing to support Myanmar in the advancement of IT sector if Myanmar side propose for the assistance, the report quoting the India embassy, adding that India has also planned to grant more scholarships to Myanmar students who desire to pursue their further education in the country.
India has so far awarded scholarships to over 150 Myanmar students, it added.
During last year, Myanmar and India cooperated in implementation of setting up 11 centers for enhancement of IT skill in key cities of Yangon, Mandalay and others.
The project, implemented by the Centre for Development Advanced Computing (CDAC) of India and the state-run Myanmar Posts and Telecommunications (MPT), started at the end of last year and with regard to the project, Myanmar sent 100 government servants to India to undergo the training.
Meanwhile, Myanmar and India also cooperated in implementing cross-border optical fiber link between the two countries to boost information link which started in December 2006, according to the earlier report.
The 640-kilometer-long Myanmar-India optical fiber link project which worth 7 million U.S. dollars connects India's northeastern border town of Moreh and Myanmar's second largest city of Mandalay, passes through six cities of Tamu, Kampatwa, KyiGone, Shwebo, Monywa and Sagaing.
Along the fiber link, ADSL+2 system with 7,000 lines are being installed in 80 locations including Yangon, Mandalay and Nay Pyi Taw.
Myanmar official statistics show that Myanmar-India bilateral trade reached 951.3 million U.S. dollars in 2008-09 with Myanmar's exports to India accounting for 805.1 million U.S. dollars and its imports from India 146.2 million dollars.
India stands as Myanmar's 4th largest trading partner after Thailand, China and Singapore and also Myanmar's second largest export market after Thailand, absorbing 25 percent of its total exports.
The Myanmar compiled figures also show that India's contracted investment in Myanmar reached 219.57 million U.S. dollars as of January 2008, of which 137 million were drawn into the oil and gas sector in September 2007.
www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-27 18:43:34
YANGON, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- More Indian companies are to invest in Myanmar's information technology (IT) and education sectors this year, a local weekly The Myanmar Post reported Thursday.
Being one of the IT power countries, India is willing to support Myanmar in the advancement of IT sector if Myanmar side propose for the assistance, the report quoting the India embassy, adding that India has also planned to grant more scholarships to Myanmar students who desire to pursue their further education in the country.
India has so far awarded scholarships to over 150 Myanmar students, it added.
During last year, Myanmar and India cooperated in implementation of setting up 11 centers for enhancement of IT skill in key cities of Yangon, Mandalay and others.
The project, implemented by the Centre for Development Advanced Computing (CDAC) of India and the state-run Myanmar Posts and Telecommunications (MPT), started at the end of last year and with regard to the project, Myanmar sent 100 government servants to India to undergo the training.
Meanwhile, Myanmar and India also cooperated in implementing cross-border optical fiber link between the two countries to boost information link which started in December 2006, according to the earlier report.
The 640-kilometer-long Myanmar-India optical fiber link project which worth 7 million U.S. dollars connects India's northeastern border town of Moreh and Myanmar's second largest city of Mandalay, passes through six cities of Tamu, Kampatwa, KyiGone, Shwebo, Monywa and Sagaing.
Along the fiber link, ADSL+2 system with 7,000 lines are being installed in 80 locations including Yangon, Mandalay and Nay Pyi Taw.
Myanmar official statistics show that Myanmar-India bilateral trade reached 951.3 million U.S. dollars in 2008-09 with Myanmar's exports to India accounting for 805.1 million U.S. dollars and its imports from India 146.2 million dollars.
India stands as Myanmar's 4th largest trading partner after Thailand, China and Singapore and also Myanmar's second largest export market after Thailand, absorbing 25 percent of its total exports.
The Myanmar compiled figures also show that India's contracted investment in Myanmar reached 219.57 million U.S. dollars as of January 2008, of which 137 million were drawn into the oil and gas sector in September 2007.
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August 27, 2009 16:29 PM
Myanmar To Use Night Bazaar In Ancient City To Attract Tourists
YANGON, Aug 27 (Bernama) -- The Myanmar Hoteliers Association ( MHA) will add night bazaar in the ancient city of Bagan during this year to attract more world travellers to the tourist site and provide a nice shopping place for them, sources with the MHA said on Thursday.
Quoting the sources, China's Xinhua news agency said that the move will be implemented in coming travel season starting October.
In the 2-hour night bazaar, which scheduled to run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., the shops will display local art products, such as lacquer ware, bamboo works and beautiful local made cloth, food stuff, ancient handicrafts and gifts.
There are four hotel zones in Bagan made up of 91 hotels, motels and inns which have been upgraded to serve visitors, it added.
Meanwhile, Myanmar is also carrying out greening the Bagan city with the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) for the same purpose of promoting country's tourism sector.
The project between the Myanmar Ministry of Culture and the KOICA is also aimed at prevention against forest depletion and preservation of natural environment in the area.
The ancient city, the famous tourist site in Myanmar, is located in the northern part of the country of the Mandalay division.
Bagan, which stood as an ancient capital from 11th to 13th centuries and Buddhist center with about 10,000 pagodas and religious structures spreading more than 80 square kilometers, now remains with over 2,000 ruins.
Myanmar has been making efforts to promote its international tourism market, targeting a tourist arrival of 1 million in the present 2009-10 fiscal year which began in April, the earlier report said.
Myanmar's tourism business started to drop near the end of 2007 and continued in 2008 due to the deadly cyclone Nags. Moreover, the global financial crisis, which sparked in late 2008, also delayed Myanmar's tourism development.
According to official statistics, tourist arrivals in Myanmar in 2008 totalled over 260,000.
Myanmar To Use Night Bazaar In Ancient City To Attract Tourists
YANGON, Aug 27 (Bernama) -- The Myanmar Hoteliers Association ( MHA) will add night bazaar in the ancient city of Bagan during this year to attract more world travellers to the tourist site and provide a nice shopping place for them, sources with the MHA said on Thursday.
Quoting the sources, China's Xinhua news agency said that the move will be implemented in coming travel season starting October.
In the 2-hour night bazaar, which scheduled to run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., the shops will display local art products, such as lacquer ware, bamboo works and beautiful local made cloth, food stuff, ancient handicrafts and gifts.
There are four hotel zones in Bagan made up of 91 hotels, motels and inns which have been upgraded to serve visitors, it added.
Meanwhile, Myanmar is also carrying out greening the Bagan city with the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) for the same purpose of promoting country's tourism sector.
The project between the Myanmar Ministry of Culture and the KOICA is also aimed at prevention against forest depletion and preservation of natural environment in the area.
The ancient city, the famous tourist site in Myanmar, is located in the northern part of the country of the Mandalay division.
Bagan, which stood as an ancient capital from 11th to 13th centuries and Buddhist center with about 10,000 pagodas and religious structures spreading more than 80 square kilometers, now remains with over 2,000 ruins.
Myanmar has been making efforts to promote its international tourism market, targeting a tourist arrival of 1 million in the present 2009-10 fiscal year which began in April, the earlier report said.
Myanmar's tourism business started to drop near the end of 2007 and continued in 2008 due to the deadly cyclone Nags. Moreover, the global financial crisis, which sparked in late 2008, also delayed Myanmar's tourism development.
According to official statistics, tourist arrivals in Myanmar in 2008 totalled over 260,000.
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The Irrawaddy - Webb’s Misguided Views
By PYINYA ZAWTA, Wednesday, August 26, 2009
US Sen Jim Webb recently traveled to Burma to lean not on Burma's military regime, but to pressure my country's democracy movement into giving up economic sanctions—the most important tool in our struggle for freedom.
Although he emphasized the necessity of the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, this falls far short of the demands of the US, the United Nations and the European Union for the immediate and unconditional release of all my country's 2,100 political prisoners.
Webb's ignorance of the situation in my country was revealed his book "A Time to Fight" in which he came down squarely on the side of the oppressors in Burma. He wrote about the demonstrations which took place in Burma in 2007, led by Buddhist monks such as myself.
"If Westerners had remained in the country this moment might never have occurred, because it is entirely possible that conditions may have improved rather than deteriorated."
Webb's statement is either shockingly naïve or willfully misleading. We Buddhist monks, who Webb discounts as a "throng," marched for an end to military dictatorship in Burma not because we wanted marginal improvements in our economy. We marched because we believe in freedom and democracy and are willing to make sacrifices to reach those goals.
Webb claims that the Burmese people would benefit from interaction with the outside world, as if we need to be condescendingly "taught" by Americans about our rights and responsibilities. Had Webb spent some time with real Burmese people apart from the military regime and others who share his views, he would better understand the sacrifice we made for democracy, and he would know that we Burmese value the longstanding support we have had from the US Congress.
Webb, an author, has proven extremely manipulative in his use of language, calling for "engagement" and "interaction" instead of sanctions. His implication is that the Burmese people are solely set on sanctions and confrontation—the exact same language used by Burma's military regime, which couldn't be further from the truth. The truth is that the world is not as black and white as Webb would have it. We want the United States to talk to and negotiate with Burma's military regime, but this shouldn't preclude increasing international pressure. The US appears to be able to carry out this policy with other countries such as in North Korea where it is willing to talk to the North Koreans while at the same time increasing sanctions if Pyongyang doesn't respond. Webb is intent on driving a wedge into this process in the case of Burma. We must choose, he explains, between sanctions and engagement—there can be no sophisticated strategy, only complete involvement or none at all.
What Webb proposes—lifting sanctions on Burma—translates to basically handing over the Burmese peoples' natural resources to rapacious multinational corporations, particularly Big Oil. If the US lifts sanctions on Burma, there will be a rush of companies into Burma intent on looting my country's natural heritage and the benefits of such "engagement" will flow directly to the military regime.
In terms of human rights, Webb has remained focused only on Suu Kyi's freedom and ability to participate in scheduled elections in Burma, never mind the fact that the Burmese regime has already rigged the elections so that no matter who participates there will be many more decades of complete military rule.
The new constitution is an air-tight document that gives no room whatsoever for reform from within. At the same time, Webb has completely ignored the purposeful, massive human rights violations carried out by Burma's military regime. The human rights nightmare in Burma includes the recruitment of tens of thousands of child soldiers, pressing hundreds of thousands of Burmese into forced labor and the widespread rape of ethnic minority women.
Luckily for the Burmese people, Webb is not the only US senator. Recently, the US Senate voted unanimously to extend sanctions on Burma. President Obama signed the bill into law.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is a student of politics and more likely to examine the facts on the ground instead of falling for blanket ideological generalizations. While Webb may seek to sell out Aung San Suu Kyi, our courageous Buddhist monks, and all the people of Burma, we hold out hope that Secretary Clinton and President Obama will take a more nuanced view in formulating policy toward Burma.
In particular, the US should seek to negotiate with Burma's military regime—but, at the same time, carry forward along the lines of the advice offered by South Africa's Nobel Peace Prize recipient Desmond Tutu: seek a global arms embargo on Burma's military regime, start a UN Security Council investigation into crimes against humanity committed by the regime, and begin the process to full implementation of financial sanctions against the regime and its cronies.
Webb is now despised by the people of Burma. If he succeeds in achieving a shift in US policy to abandon sanctions, he will have secured his place in history as one of the
most important supporters of Than Swe's military dictatorship.
U Pyinya Zawta, Buddhist monk, was actively involved in the 1988 demonstrations. He was sentenced to three years in prison in 1990 and again sentenced to seven years in 1998. He is one of the founding members of the All Burma Monks' Alliance (ABMA) which lead the 2007 Saffron Revolution. He is now in exile in New York after fleeing the country due to the threat of arrest.
By PYINYA ZAWTA, Wednesday, August 26, 2009
US Sen Jim Webb recently traveled to Burma to lean not on Burma's military regime, but to pressure my country's democracy movement into giving up economic sanctions—the most important tool in our struggle for freedom.
Although he emphasized the necessity of the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, this falls far short of the demands of the US, the United Nations and the European Union for the immediate and unconditional release of all my country's 2,100 political prisoners.
Webb's ignorance of the situation in my country was revealed his book "A Time to Fight" in which he came down squarely on the side of the oppressors in Burma. He wrote about the demonstrations which took place in Burma in 2007, led by Buddhist monks such as myself.
"If Westerners had remained in the country this moment might never have occurred, because it is entirely possible that conditions may have improved rather than deteriorated."
Webb's statement is either shockingly naïve or willfully misleading. We Buddhist monks, who Webb discounts as a "throng," marched for an end to military dictatorship in Burma not because we wanted marginal improvements in our economy. We marched because we believe in freedom and democracy and are willing to make sacrifices to reach those goals.
Webb claims that the Burmese people would benefit from interaction with the outside world, as if we need to be condescendingly "taught" by Americans about our rights and responsibilities. Had Webb spent some time with real Burmese people apart from the military regime and others who share his views, he would better understand the sacrifice we made for democracy, and he would know that we Burmese value the longstanding support we have had from the US Congress.
Webb, an author, has proven extremely manipulative in his use of language, calling for "engagement" and "interaction" instead of sanctions. His implication is that the Burmese people are solely set on sanctions and confrontation—the exact same language used by Burma's military regime, which couldn't be further from the truth. The truth is that the world is not as black and white as Webb would have it. We want the United States to talk to and negotiate with Burma's military regime, but this shouldn't preclude increasing international pressure. The US appears to be able to carry out this policy with other countries such as in North Korea where it is willing to talk to the North Koreans while at the same time increasing sanctions if Pyongyang doesn't respond. Webb is intent on driving a wedge into this process in the case of Burma. We must choose, he explains, between sanctions and engagement—there can be no sophisticated strategy, only complete involvement or none at all.
What Webb proposes—lifting sanctions on Burma—translates to basically handing over the Burmese peoples' natural resources to rapacious multinational corporations, particularly Big Oil. If the US lifts sanctions on Burma, there will be a rush of companies into Burma intent on looting my country's natural heritage and the benefits of such "engagement" will flow directly to the military regime.
In terms of human rights, Webb has remained focused only on Suu Kyi's freedom and ability to participate in scheduled elections in Burma, never mind the fact that the Burmese regime has already rigged the elections so that no matter who participates there will be many more decades of complete military rule.
The new constitution is an air-tight document that gives no room whatsoever for reform from within. At the same time, Webb has completely ignored the purposeful, massive human rights violations carried out by Burma's military regime. The human rights nightmare in Burma includes the recruitment of tens of thousands of child soldiers, pressing hundreds of thousands of Burmese into forced labor and the widespread rape of ethnic minority women.
Luckily for the Burmese people, Webb is not the only US senator. Recently, the US Senate voted unanimously to extend sanctions on Burma. President Obama signed the bill into law.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is a student of politics and more likely to examine the facts on the ground instead of falling for blanket ideological generalizations. While Webb may seek to sell out Aung San Suu Kyi, our courageous Buddhist monks, and all the people of Burma, we hold out hope that Secretary Clinton and President Obama will take a more nuanced view in formulating policy toward Burma.
In particular, the US should seek to negotiate with Burma's military regime—but, at the same time, carry forward along the lines of the advice offered by South Africa's Nobel Peace Prize recipient Desmond Tutu: seek a global arms embargo on Burma's military regime, start a UN Security Council investigation into crimes against humanity committed by the regime, and begin the process to full implementation of financial sanctions against the regime and its cronies.
Webb is now despised by the people of Burma. If he succeeds in achieving a shift in US policy to abandon sanctions, he will have secured his place in history as one of the
most important supporters of Than Swe's military dictatorship.
U Pyinya Zawta, Buddhist monk, was actively involved in the 1988 demonstrations. He was sentenced to three years in prison in 1990 and again sentenced to seven years in 1998. He is one of the founding members of the All Burma Monks' Alliance (ABMA) which lead the 2007 Saffron Revolution. He is now in exile in New York after fleeing the country due to the threat of arrest.
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The Irrawaddy - Thein Htay: Burma’s Terminator?
By MIN LWIN, Thursday, August 27, 2009
To win respect and rapid promotion in the Burmese military you have to play hardball. Maj-Gen Thein Htay, who is deputy-chief of Defense Industry l, is one of the toughest players on the field.
Military insiders say that Thein Htay has played a key role in the modernization of the armed forces, and he is one of the prime promoters of the idea of purchasing missiles.
If reports are true that Burma is trying to acquire nuclear weapons, then he is likely to be a key player in that effort.
Last year, he accompanied Gen Thura Shwe Mann, the regime’s No 3 general, on his clandestine trip to North Korea. During the visit, he and Shwe Mann visited several arms factories and a military hardware deal with the Communist regime was signed.
Known to be an extreme nationalist, Thein Htay didn’t serve long at the infantry battalion level, and he was quickly given an important position at the military industry ministry because of his extensive knowledge of the weapons industry.
Thein Htay received special attention when he advised junta leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe on how to upgrade the Burmese armed forces. He received a “jump” promotion when Than Shwe grew more serious about buying missiles and missile technology after a series of border skirmishes with Thai forces in 2001-2002.
In 1998, Thein Htay was a lieutenant-colonel on the general staff. In 2006, he was promoted to major general, followed by deputy-chief of Defense Industry 1—a sign that he had the trust of Than Shwe.
Sources say that the junta leader sometimes comes to weapons tests when Thein Htay demonstrates newly bought missiles or other weapons.
Defense Industry 1, one of Burma’s main military industrial complexes, operates 22 manufacturing or procurement facilities, many located on the west bank of the Irrawaddy River west of the Pegu mountain range. Several weapon testing grounds are located near Pegu and Pyi.
Military sources said that Thein Htay has been involved in the upgrading and creation of military facilities, including tunnels for missiles, aircraft and even naval ships. He has also expanded technological assistance of Russia, China, North Korea and Singapore.
Under Thein Htay’s command, military factories manufacture conventional weapons, including automatic rifles, light machine guns and landmines. Sources said that at least two military facilities are believed to be involved in refining uranium.
In earlier decades, the Defense Ministry purchased most of its arms and ammunition under contract with the Federal Republic of Germany’s state-owned Fritz Werner, according to defense analysts.
Burma has procured small arms, jet fighters and naval ships from the West particularly the US and EU countries. However, after the 1988 democracy uprising, Western countries imposed arms embargo and stopped selling arms to Burma.
Thein Htay often travels abroad to look for new sources of weapons and ammunition, upgrade missiles, defensive rockets, anti-aircraft radar and command and control technology.
Should Burma be trying to acquire a nuclear capability, Thein Htay and the Defense Ministry will be key players in that effort.
By MIN LWIN, Thursday, August 27, 2009
To win respect and rapid promotion in the Burmese military you have to play hardball. Maj-Gen Thein Htay, who is deputy-chief of Defense Industry l, is one of the toughest players on the field.
Military insiders say that Thein Htay has played a key role in the modernization of the armed forces, and he is one of the prime promoters of the idea of purchasing missiles.
If reports are true that Burma is trying to acquire nuclear weapons, then he is likely to be a key player in that effort.
Last year, he accompanied Gen Thura Shwe Mann, the regime’s No 3 general, on his clandestine trip to North Korea. During the visit, he and Shwe Mann visited several arms factories and a military hardware deal with the Communist regime was signed.
Known to be an extreme nationalist, Thein Htay didn’t serve long at the infantry battalion level, and he was quickly given an important position at the military industry ministry because of his extensive knowledge of the weapons industry.
Thein Htay received special attention when he advised junta leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe on how to upgrade the Burmese armed forces. He received a “jump” promotion when Than Shwe grew more serious about buying missiles and missile technology after a series of border skirmishes with Thai forces in 2001-2002.
In 1998, Thein Htay was a lieutenant-colonel on the general staff. In 2006, he was promoted to major general, followed by deputy-chief of Defense Industry 1—a sign that he had the trust of Than Shwe.
Sources say that the junta leader sometimes comes to weapons tests when Thein Htay demonstrates newly bought missiles or other weapons.
Defense Industry 1, one of Burma’s main military industrial complexes, operates 22 manufacturing or procurement facilities, many located on the west bank of the Irrawaddy River west of the Pegu mountain range. Several weapon testing grounds are located near Pegu and Pyi.
Military sources said that Thein Htay has been involved in the upgrading and creation of military facilities, including tunnels for missiles, aircraft and even naval ships. He has also expanded technological assistance of Russia, China, North Korea and Singapore.
Under Thein Htay’s command, military factories manufacture conventional weapons, including automatic rifles, light machine guns and landmines. Sources said that at least two military facilities are believed to be involved in refining uranium.
In earlier decades, the Defense Ministry purchased most of its arms and ammunition under contract with the Federal Republic of Germany’s state-owned Fritz Werner, according to defense analysts.
Burma has procured small arms, jet fighters and naval ships from the West particularly the US and EU countries. However, after the 1988 democracy uprising, Western countries imposed arms embargo and stopped selling arms to Burma.
Thein Htay often travels abroad to look for new sources of weapons and ammunition, upgrade missiles, defensive rockets, anti-aircraft radar and command and control technology.
Should Burma be trying to acquire a nuclear capability, Thein Htay and the Defense Ministry will be key players in that effort.
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The Irrawaddy - Expert Doubts Napyidaw’s Nuclear Program
By WAI MOE, Thursday, August 27, 2009
A well-known expert on Burma’s military affairs is skeptical about recent reports on nuclear cooperation between the Burmese regime and North Korea.
In a paper published on the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s Web site on Monday, Andrew Selth, an expert on Burmese military affairs and author of “Burma’s Armed Forces: Power without Glory,” expressed doubts about Burma’s nuclear capability.
Selth said that Burma’s recent arms and materiel purchases from various countries including North Korea “do not necessarily mean that the junta is engaged in a secret program to develop weapons of mass destruction (WMD).”
“Some generals—possibly including regime leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe—are clearly attracted to the idea of acquiring a nuclear weapon, in the belief that possession of WMD would give Burma the same stature and bargaining power that they believe is now enjoyed by North Korea,” Selth said.
“The key question, however, is whether this is just wishful thinking, or if there has been a serious attempt by the regime to pursue a nuclear weapons program,” he said.
In early August, based on interviews with defectors conducted over two years by Professor Desmond Ball of the Australia National University's Defense Study Center and Thailand-based journalist Phil Thornton, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Bangkok Post published stories saying that the junta could develop a nuclear bomb by 2014.
Selth said US officials knew about the Burmese defectors more than two years ago. “Yet, even when armed with the apparent revelations of all these defectors, the Bush administration remained conspicuously silent about Burma’s nuclear status,” he said.
Selth also said that the tunnels pictured in recent news reports were “quite modest” and would be vulnerable to attack by “a modern air force equipped with latest weapons.”
“Many of these underground facilities are probably for military purposes, such as command bunkers, air raid shelters and protective tunnels for vehicles and weapons systems,” Selth said, noting that the Burmese generals have feared an air attack ever since the Gulf War.
“Some are more likely to be related to civil engineering projects. None of the photos support claims of a secret nuclear reactor, or nuclear weapons project,” he said.
Facing an arms embargo since 1988, the Burmese junta sought to reduce its dependency on foreign arms suppliers, Selth said, suggesting that recent purchases could be part of a program for the country’s large defense industrial complex to produce more sophisticated weapons, rather than WMD.
Selth said that it is certain that North Korea is “selling Burma conventional arms, sharing its military expertise and experience, and helping it upgrade its defense infrastructure.”
However, Selth does not totally deny reports of Naypyidaw’s nuclear ambitions, saying that Burmese natural gas sales have given the regime untapped foreign exchange reserves that could be used to fund a nuclear program.
“Russia is providing technical training for a large number of Burmese servicemen and officials, including in the nuclear field,” he said. “Some sophisticated equipment has been imported, and it is possible that sensitive nuclear technologies have been provided to Burma by North Korea.”
Speaking in an interview on National Public Radio, Bertil Lintner, a Thailand-based expert on the Burmese junta, said that the Burmese are “certainly interested” in acquiring a nuclear weapon.
“[The Burmese are] seeing how the North Koreans have been able to stand up against the Americans and the rest of the world because they are nuclear-armed. And they would like to have the same kind of negotiating position,” he said.
According to Lintner, Beijing is “well aware of Burma’s nuclear ambitions,” and “there’s definitely Chinese complicity in this new cooperation between North Korea and Burma.”
However, Lintner said the Chinese can conveniently deny any role by saying that it is the North Koreans who are cooperating with Burma, and that China cannot control them.
By WAI MOE, Thursday, August 27, 2009
A well-known expert on Burma’s military affairs is skeptical about recent reports on nuclear cooperation between the Burmese regime and North Korea.
In a paper published on the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s Web site on Monday, Andrew Selth, an expert on Burmese military affairs and author of “Burma’s Armed Forces: Power without Glory,” expressed doubts about Burma’s nuclear capability.
Selth said that Burma’s recent arms and materiel purchases from various countries including North Korea “do not necessarily mean that the junta is engaged in a secret program to develop weapons of mass destruction (WMD).”
“Some generals—possibly including regime leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe—are clearly attracted to the idea of acquiring a nuclear weapon, in the belief that possession of WMD would give Burma the same stature and bargaining power that they believe is now enjoyed by North Korea,” Selth said.
“The key question, however, is whether this is just wishful thinking, or if there has been a serious attempt by the regime to pursue a nuclear weapons program,” he said.
In early August, based on interviews with defectors conducted over two years by Professor Desmond Ball of the Australia National University's Defense Study Center and Thailand-based journalist Phil Thornton, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Bangkok Post published stories saying that the junta could develop a nuclear bomb by 2014.
Selth said US officials knew about the Burmese defectors more than two years ago. “Yet, even when armed with the apparent revelations of all these defectors, the Bush administration remained conspicuously silent about Burma’s nuclear status,” he said.
Selth also said that the tunnels pictured in recent news reports were “quite modest” and would be vulnerable to attack by “a modern air force equipped with latest weapons.”
“Many of these underground facilities are probably for military purposes, such as command bunkers, air raid shelters and protective tunnels for vehicles and weapons systems,” Selth said, noting that the Burmese generals have feared an air attack ever since the Gulf War.
“Some are more likely to be related to civil engineering projects. None of the photos support claims of a secret nuclear reactor, or nuclear weapons project,” he said.
Facing an arms embargo since 1988, the Burmese junta sought to reduce its dependency on foreign arms suppliers, Selth said, suggesting that recent purchases could be part of a program for the country’s large defense industrial complex to produce more sophisticated weapons, rather than WMD.
Selth said that it is certain that North Korea is “selling Burma conventional arms, sharing its military expertise and experience, and helping it upgrade its defense infrastructure.”
However, Selth does not totally deny reports of Naypyidaw’s nuclear ambitions, saying that Burmese natural gas sales have given the regime untapped foreign exchange reserves that could be used to fund a nuclear program.
“Russia is providing technical training for a large number of Burmese servicemen and officials, including in the nuclear field,” he said. “Some sophisticated equipment has been imported, and it is possible that sensitive nuclear technologies have been provided to Burma by North Korea.”
Speaking in an interview on National Public Radio, Bertil Lintner, a Thailand-based expert on the Burmese junta, said that the Burmese are “certainly interested” in acquiring a nuclear weapon.
“[The Burmese are] seeing how the North Koreans have been able to stand up against the Americans and the rest of the world because they are nuclear-armed. And they would like to have the same kind of negotiating position,” he said.
According to Lintner, Beijing is “well aware of Burma’s nuclear ambitions,” and “there’s definitely Chinese complicity in this new cooperation between North Korea and Burma.”
However, Lintner said the Chinese can conveniently deny any role by saying that it is the North Koreans who are cooperating with Burma, and that China cannot control them.
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The Irrawaddy - Critics Challenge Sen Webb’s Views on Burma
By LALIT K JHA / Washinton, Thursday, August 27, 2009
The Burma engagement policy advocated by Sen James Webb, as presented in an op-ed article in The New York Times on Tuesday, has been challenged by Burma experts and the Burmese prime minister in exile.
Webb, who recently became the first US lawmaker to visit Burma in a decade, during which he achieved a rare meeting with both Sen-Gen Than Shwe and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, in an opinion piece urged the Obama administration to ease economic sanctions on Burma and to adopt a policy of engagement with the military junta.
However, his arguments show his poor understanding of military-ruled Burma, critics and Burma watchers told The Irrawaddy. Critics said his approach would only help in further legitimizing and strengthening the military government.
“The problem with the senator’s case is not the specific policy prescriptions he offers, but its faulty assumptions,” said Walter Lohman, the director of The Heritage Foundation's Asian Studies Center, a Washington-based think tank.
On Webb’s argument that sanctions have failed and engagement should be tried, Lohman said there is no denying that sanctions have not brought about change in Burma.
“But the answer lies in building the necessary international consensus to pressure it [the military government], not abandoning the effort.” he said. “Besides, engagement by Burma’s neighbors has been no more effective.”
He said Webb should understand that Asean’s engagement has failed for good reason. It was never intended to bring about democratic change in Burma, he said. That goal has always been its rationalization for doing business with an odious regime.
“As for the Chinese, there is at least integrity in their position,” he said. “It has never argued for engagement on the basis of bringing democratic change to Burma. But for that reason, Sen Webb is barking up the wrong Chinese tree—as, in fact, he acknowledges may be the case. The truth is the Chinese will never bring meaningful pressure to bear on the junta. They proved that with a veto in the Security Council in 2007. And they have proven it by watering down every statement the Security Council makes when called to act.”
On Webb’s argument that if the US can engage China and Vietnam, why not Burma, Lohman said there is a fundamental difference.
“Vietnam made a strategic decision in 1986 to reform its economy and open up to the world. Without this decision, the subsequent normalization could not have happened,” he said, adding it is the same regarding US normalization with China.
“The Burmese junta has not made such a strategic decision. They reach out piece meal for means of securing their grip on power. That’s why they joined Asean in 1997. There was a time in the 1990s when the Burmese were open to foreign visitors with critical perspectives. They are much more discerning nowadays,” he said.
“Sen Webb was granted his historic meeting with Than Shwe because the senator is an opponent of current American policy and his presence could be used—as it was—to send a signal of regime stability to the long suffering people of Burma,” Lohman said.
Noting that Webb rests much of his case on Burma’s 2010 elections, Lohman said by focusing on “what is possible” instead of “free and fair elections,” the senator leaves little doubt that what he intends is to accept the junta’s terms.
Bertil Lintner, a Swedish journalist who has covered Burma for more than two decades and published several books on Burma, said that he disagreed with Webb’s views.
“Westerners who think they can ‘engage’ the Burmese generals clearly overestimate their own importance,” he said. “The Burmese generals don't listen to them; they just use them.
He said America’s influence on Burma is often overestimated.
“Burmese foreign policy is guided by a ‘three-circle concept,’” he said. “The first circle consists of Burma's immediate neighbors, countries with which Burma shares a common border. Circle No 2 is the region (Asean). No 3, the rest of the world. Circle No 3 is important to the generals only insofar as it may affect circle 1 and to a somewhat lesser degree circle 2.
Otherwise, the US doesn't matter, engagement, sanctions or whatever.
There is no way the US by being a bit friendlier is going to woe Burma away from its dependence on China—that's naive and wishful thinking.”
Dr Sein Win, the cousin of Suu Kyi and prime minister in exile, said that as long as the regime oppresses its own people, there should be no normalization of its relationship with other countries, including the US.
Selective sanctions should be imposed on the military junta, he said, and there is no reason to lift the sanctions. Because human rights violations in Burma continue, he said, “You have to maintain the present form of sanctions.”
Some Burma observes inside the country think that Than Shwe has shrewdly manipulated the US senator. After the visit, many ordinary Burmese thought the US was going to normalize its relationship with the regime.
An editor who runs an influential weekly journal in Burma observed: “Burmese people thought the US was going to betray the democracy cause. I hope this is not the case.”
One cautious NGO worker said, “From my reading of the press and the commentators, those who lean towards engagement thought the visit was a breakthrough and those who lean towards sanctions think Webb played into the regime's hands.”
The US State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton looks forward to a meeting with Webb.
“We are expecting to complete our policy review,” he said. “I am not going to put a time limit on it. But I think that that’s going to be something we’re going to be looking at.
And before we actually conclude that review, I’m not going to prejudge how it will come out.”
Correspondents in Rangoon and Chiang Mai also contributed reporting to this story.
By LALIT K JHA / Washinton, Thursday, August 27, 2009
The Burma engagement policy advocated by Sen James Webb, as presented in an op-ed article in The New York Times on Tuesday, has been challenged by Burma experts and the Burmese prime minister in exile.
Webb, who recently became the first US lawmaker to visit Burma in a decade, during which he achieved a rare meeting with both Sen-Gen Than Shwe and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, in an opinion piece urged the Obama administration to ease economic sanctions on Burma and to adopt a policy of engagement with the military junta.
However, his arguments show his poor understanding of military-ruled Burma, critics and Burma watchers told The Irrawaddy. Critics said his approach would only help in further legitimizing and strengthening the military government.
“The problem with the senator’s case is not the specific policy prescriptions he offers, but its faulty assumptions,” said Walter Lohman, the director of The Heritage Foundation's Asian Studies Center, a Washington-based think tank.
On Webb’s argument that sanctions have failed and engagement should be tried, Lohman said there is no denying that sanctions have not brought about change in Burma.
“But the answer lies in building the necessary international consensus to pressure it [the military government], not abandoning the effort.” he said. “Besides, engagement by Burma’s neighbors has been no more effective.”
He said Webb should understand that Asean’s engagement has failed for good reason. It was never intended to bring about democratic change in Burma, he said. That goal has always been its rationalization for doing business with an odious regime.
“As for the Chinese, there is at least integrity in their position,” he said. “It has never argued for engagement on the basis of bringing democratic change to Burma. But for that reason, Sen Webb is barking up the wrong Chinese tree—as, in fact, he acknowledges may be the case. The truth is the Chinese will never bring meaningful pressure to bear on the junta. They proved that with a veto in the Security Council in 2007. And they have proven it by watering down every statement the Security Council makes when called to act.”
On Webb’s argument that if the US can engage China and Vietnam, why not Burma, Lohman said there is a fundamental difference.
“Vietnam made a strategic decision in 1986 to reform its economy and open up to the world. Without this decision, the subsequent normalization could not have happened,” he said, adding it is the same regarding US normalization with China.
“The Burmese junta has not made such a strategic decision. They reach out piece meal for means of securing their grip on power. That’s why they joined Asean in 1997. There was a time in the 1990s when the Burmese were open to foreign visitors with critical perspectives. They are much more discerning nowadays,” he said.
“Sen Webb was granted his historic meeting with Than Shwe because the senator is an opponent of current American policy and his presence could be used—as it was—to send a signal of regime stability to the long suffering people of Burma,” Lohman said.
Noting that Webb rests much of his case on Burma’s 2010 elections, Lohman said by focusing on “what is possible” instead of “free and fair elections,” the senator leaves little doubt that what he intends is to accept the junta’s terms.
Bertil Lintner, a Swedish journalist who has covered Burma for more than two decades and published several books on Burma, said that he disagreed with Webb’s views.
“Westerners who think they can ‘engage’ the Burmese generals clearly overestimate their own importance,” he said. “The Burmese generals don't listen to them; they just use them.
He said America’s influence on Burma is often overestimated.
“Burmese foreign policy is guided by a ‘three-circle concept,’” he said. “The first circle consists of Burma's immediate neighbors, countries with which Burma shares a common border. Circle No 2 is the region (Asean). No 3, the rest of the world. Circle No 3 is important to the generals only insofar as it may affect circle 1 and to a somewhat lesser degree circle 2.
Otherwise, the US doesn't matter, engagement, sanctions or whatever.
There is no way the US by being a bit friendlier is going to woe Burma away from its dependence on China—that's naive and wishful thinking.”
Dr Sein Win, the cousin of Suu Kyi and prime minister in exile, said that as long as the regime oppresses its own people, there should be no normalization of its relationship with other countries, including the US.
Selective sanctions should be imposed on the military junta, he said, and there is no reason to lift the sanctions. Because human rights violations in Burma continue, he said, “You have to maintain the present form of sanctions.”
Some Burma observes inside the country think that Than Shwe has shrewdly manipulated the US senator. After the visit, many ordinary Burmese thought the US was going to normalize its relationship with the regime.
An editor who runs an influential weekly journal in Burma observed: “Burmese people thought the US was going to betray the democracy cause. I hope this is not the case.”
One cautious NGO worker said, “From my reading of the press and the commentators, those who lean towards engagement thought the visit was a breakthrough and those who lean towards sanctions think Webb played into the regime's hands.”
The US State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton looks forward to a meeting with Webb.
“We are expecting to complete our policy review,” he said. “I am not going to put a time limit on it. But I think that that’s going to be something we’re going to be looking at.
And before we actually conclude that review, I’m not going to prejudge how it will come out.”
Correspondents in Rangoon and Chiang Mai also contributed reporting to this story.
*********************************************************
Mizzima News - Opposition activists launch yellow campaign
by Myint Maung
Thursday, 27 August 2009 14:06
New Delhi (Mizzima) – With the second anniversary of the ‘Saffron Revolution’ round the corner, 10 opposition activists launched a campaign in Rangoon last Tuesday to pay tribute to monks, who took part in chanting Metta sutra two years ago.
The activists donned yellow symbols during their weekly so-called 'Tuesday prayer campaign', conducted in Shwedagon pagoda for the release of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.
"September is drawing close. So we wore yellow ribbons, yellow hairpins, yellow flowers and yellow dresses as symbols, while paying tribute to the ‘Saffron Revolution’ during our prayer campaign. We prayed for the release of our leader," Naw Ohn Hla, one of the campaigners, told Mizzima.
Officials of the Burmese military junta keep a hawk’s eye on the prayer campaign, suspicious and apprehensive that it would again become part of a growing mass movement against the regime. There have been several instances when campaigners have been arrested.
The activists plan to forge ahead with the yellow campaign with their prayer meetings and prayer services at pagodas every Tuesday until September 25.
"This campaign has started in Rangoon. Other towns and cities can join us. It (junta) cannot do anything to us for just wearing these yellow symbols. So we request all to join us. I'd like to say do not forget our religion and sasana," Naw Ohn Hla said.
Thousands of monks hit the streets in September 2007 and chanted Metta Sutra in Rangoon and other cities. But the security forces came down heavily in a brutal crackdown, killing, maiming and arresting at random, breaking up the demonstrations.
The junta, however, claimed 10 people, including some monks were killed during the movement, but the opposition forces felt that the actual death toll was much higher than the official statistics dished out.
According to the Thai based 'Association for Assistance to Political Prisoners-Burma' (AAPP-B), formed by former Burmese political prisoners, over 200 monks were arrested during the demonstration. More than 2,100 political prisoners are languishing in jails throughout Burma, AAPP said.
Prayer campaigns were also launched in other cities such as Mandalay, Meiktila, Yemethin, Yenanchaung and Pegu by activists yesterday, calling for the release of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners.
Meanwhile, activists lodged a complaint with the junta supremo Senior Gen. Than Shwe by sending a letter, which says that the local authorities tried to threaten the monasteries where the Naw Ohn Hla led group were conducting prayers and offerings were being made to Buddhist monks.
by Myint Maung
Thursday, 27 August 2009 14:06
New Delhi (Mizzima) – With the second anniversary of the ‘Saffron Revolution’ round the corner, 10 opposition activists launched a campaign in Rangoon last Tuesday to pay tribute to monks, who took part in chanting Metta sutra two years ago.
The activists donned yellow symbols during their weekly so-called 'Tuesday prayer campaign', conducted in Shwedagon pagoda for the release of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.
"September is drawing close. So we wore yellow ribbons, yellow hairpins, yellow flowers and yellow dresses as symbols, while paying tribute to the ‘Saffron Revolution’ during our prayer campaign. We prayed for the release of our leader," Naw Ohn Hla, one of the campaigners, told Mizzima.
Officials of the Burmese military junta keep a hawk’s eye on the prayer campaign, suspicious and apprehensive that it would again become part of a growing mass movement against the regime. There have been several instances when campaigners have been arrested.
The activists plan to forge ahead with the yellow campaign with their prayer meetings and prayer services at pagodas every Tuesday until September 25.
"This campaign has started in Rangoon. Other towns and cities can join us. It (junta) cannot do anything to us for just wearing these yellow symbols. So we request all to join us. I'd like to say do not forget our religion and sasana," Naw Ohn Hla said.
Thousands of monks hit the streets in September 2007 and chanted Metta Sutra in Rangoon and other cities. But the security forces came down heavily in a brutal crackdown, killing, maiming and arresting at random, breaking up the demonstrations.
The junta, however, claimed 10 people, including some monks were killed during the movement, but the opposition forces felt that the actual death toll was much higher than the official statistics dished out.
According to the Thai based 'Association for Assistance to Political Prisoners-Burma' (AAPP-B), formed by former Burmese political prisoners, over 200 monks were arrested during the demonstration. More than 2,100 political prisoners are languishing in jails throughout Burma, AAPP said.
Prayer campaigns were also launched in other cities such as Mandalay, Meiktila, Yemethin, Yenanchaung and Pegu by activists yesterday, calling for the release of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners.
Meanwhile, activists lodged a complaint with the junta supremo Senior Gen. Than Shwe by sending a letter, which says that the local authorities tried to threaten the monasteries where the Naw Ohn Hla led group were conducting prayers and offerings were being made to Buddhist monks.
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